Changes in the Board of Directors of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championship Trondheim 2025

Åsne Havnelid has been appointed as the new chair of the Board of directors for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championship (NWSC) in Trondheim 2025.

In addition to Havnelid, Kjell Bjarne Helland has been nominated as deputy chairman and Eldar Rønning and Knut-Eirik Dybdal as new board members. The nomination committee’s decision will be presented at the company’s general meeting on Thursday, 16 February.

“The Board reorganized the World Championship project before Christmas. The work then entered a more operational and detailed phase. At the same time, I asked the owners to assess the need for a change in the Board’s composition,” says outgoing chairman Bård Benum.

The owners agreed to review the Board’s composition as the project enters a new phase. In addition to Åsne Havnelid as the new chair, the deputy chairman and two new board members have been nominated. Kjell Bjarne Helland is head of Trøndelag idrettskrets, Eldar Rønning is working for Sparebank 1 Midt-Norge and is a former elite cross-country skier, and Knut Erik Dybdal is director of the Nordic & Arctic Race of Norway. The new board members bring solid experience from organizing and running championships.

“The owners would like to thank outgoing chairman Bård Benum and the board members Håvard Belbo and Christine Spiten for their work initiating, establishing, and innovating the World Ski Championships,” says Tove Moe Dyrhaug on behalf of the owners.
“We look forward to welcoming Åsne Havnelid to lead the World Championship company throughout NWSC 2025,” says Dyrhaug, president of the Norwegian Ski Federation.

“We are very pleased to strengthen our event management skills with a new chair and several new board members for the implementation phase,” says the Mayor of Trondheim municipality Rita Ottervik and manager of Sør-Trøndelag skikrets Torbjørn Mæhlumsveen.

The incoming chair of the Board, Åsne Havnelid, has extensive experience in business and sports. She recently resigned as CEO of Norsk Tipping and has been General Secretary of the Norwegian Red Cross, director of SAS, assistant head of Olympiatoppen, and CEO of the 2011 FIS Ski World Championship in Oslo.

“In two years, Trondheim will once again host a Nordic World Ski Championship that celebrates skiing in a sustainable and innovative way. With my experience from the 2011 World Championships in Oslo, I look forward to working with the rest of the Board and administration to create a new world-class championship in Norway,” says Åsne Havnelid.

Photo: Vidar Ruud / NTB

OVERVIEW OF OWNERS, NOMINATION COMMITTEE, NEW BOARD, AND OUTGOING BOARD MEMBERS:

Owners:
Norwegian Ski Federation – 60 percent
Sør-Trøndelag Skikrets 30 percent
Trondheim Municipality – 10 percent

Nomination Committee:
Ski president Tove Moe Dyrhaug, Norwegian Ski Federation
District leader Torbjørn Mæhlumsveen, Sør-Trøndelag skikrets
Mayor Rita Ottervik, Trondheim Municipality

The nomination committee’s (owners’) recommendation for a new board of directors for NWSC Trondheim 2025:
Åsne Havnelid, Chair of the Board (new)
Kjell Bjarne Helland, deputy chairman (new)
Eldar Rønning, board member (new)
Knut-Eirik Dybdal, board member (new)
Gunhild Dugstad, board member
Tove Nedreberg, board member
Siri Darell, board member

Resigning members of the Board of:
Bård Benum, partner and general manager of VitalThings
Håvard Belbo, General Manager of T:lab
Christine Spiten, Fearnley Securities – Renewable Energy & Cleantech