Kenji Ogiwara

Kenji Ogiwara (荻原 健司) (born 20 December 1969) is a Japanese politician and former Nordic combined skier who won several medals at the Winter Olympics, the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, and the Holmenkollen ski festival.

He won gold medals in the Nordic combined team events at the 1992 and 1994 Winter Olympics. Ogiwara won two gold medals each in the 15 km individual (1993, 1997) and the team (3 x 10 km: 1993, 4 x 5 km: 1995) events and one bronze in the 7.5 km sprint (1999) at the Nordic skiing world championships. In 1995, Ogiwara won the Nordic combined event at the Holmenkollen ski festival.

Ogiwara received the Holmenkollen medal in 1995, becoming the first non-European and first Asian to ever receive the honor. At the 1998 Winter Olympics, he took the Athlete's Oath.

Ogiwara's twin brother Tsugiharu competed with him at the 1995 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Thunder Bay, Ontario, sharing a gold with him in the 4 x 5 km team event.

Ogiwara has also stood as candidate for Liberal Democratic Party.

Kenji Ogiwara ran for the Mayor of Nagano election, which was executed on October 31, 2021, won 98,711 votes, and was appointed Mayor of Nagano on November 11, 2021.

Filmography

 * 11 Rebels (2024)