Marvin Crawford, 74; ’56 Olympian Skier Won 14 National Titles

Marvin Crawford, 74, a former Olympian and a 14-time national champion in Nordic skiing, died Monday in Colorado Springs, Colo. The cause of death was complications from a recent stroke.

A native of Denver, Crawford grew up in Steamboat Springs and started ski jumping there at age 12. He won the national junior championship two years later.

Crawford went to the University of Denver, where he was a star skier. In 1953, he won the jumping, cross-country and slalom events at the NCAA championships. He narrowly lost the downhill, finishing second by two-tenths of a second.

He competed in the Nordic combined in the 1956 Olympics in Cortina, Italy.

He finished 23rd, with more points than any American before him.

Crawford worked for IBM in Denver and in real estate development and insurance in Steamboat Springs. In retirement, he moved to Grand Junction and then Colorado Springs.