Todd Lodwick was the first American to win major titles in Nordic combined. His international career started in 1993 and he competed through 2006, competing in four Winter Olympics, with a best finish of fourth in the 2002 team event, and a best individual finish of fifth in the 2002 sprint event. He also competed in seven World Championships and 162 World Cup events, winning six World Cup events, highlighted by his victory in the sprint at the 1998 Holmenkollen Festival, only the third American ever to medal at this competition. He also won gold at the 1996 World Junior Championships, but never managed a medal at the senior level at a major international tournament. However, Lodwick was in the top 10 of the World Cup overall standings for eight consecutive years, finishing fourth in the 1997-98, 1999-2000, and 2004-05 seasons. He also won 19 US titles in this era, 11 in Nordic combined, and eight in ski jumping.
But Lodwick retired after the 2006 season, or so it seemed. In 2008 he returned, aiming for his fifth Winter Olympics and an attempt to finally win a medal. And in 2009, at the World Championships, Lodwick came through to win gold medals in both the sprint and mass start events, the first American to ever win a major international title in Nordic combined. At Vancouver, Lodwick saw his teammates, Johnny Spillane and Bill Demong win individual medals, highlighted by Demong’s gold medal in the large hill event. But Spillane, Demong, and Lodwick, along with teammate Brett Camerota, also won a silver medal in the team event, getting Lodwick his long awaited Olympic medal.
United States