Prawat Nagvajara is a Thai

Thai people

The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...

 academic and cross-country skier

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

. He is the only person ever to have represented Thailand at the Winter Olympic Games

Winter Olympic Games

The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...

, having taken part in the 2002

2002 Winter Olympics

The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...

 and 2006 Winter Olympics

2006 Winter Olympics

The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...

. Unsurprisingly, he was therefore his country's flagbearer at the Games' Opening Ceremonies on both occasions.

Nagvajara grew up in Bangkok

Bangkok

Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...

, and was a member of a teenage rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band. He is currently a professor of electrical engineering

Electrical engineering

Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...

 at Drexel University

Drexel University

Drexel University is a private research university with the main campus located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist. Drexel offers 70 full-time undergraduate programs and accelerated degrees...

 in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Nagvajara has stated that Philip Boit

Philip Boit

Philip Kimely Boit is a cross-county skier and the first Kenyan to participate in the Winter Olympics. His first name is sometimes spelled as "Phillip"....

 was his inspiration to participate in the Olympics.

At the 2002 Games, Nagvajara took part in the 30km race, but was eliminated after being lapped. He then competed in the 1.5km sprint, and finished 68th out of 71 with a time of 4:14.55 - behind Cameroon's Isaac Menyoli

Isaac Menyoli

Isaac Menyoli, born August 6, 1972, is a Cameroonian architect and skier who was the first person to represent his country at the Winter Olympic Games when he took part in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. He competed in the men's classical 15 km race in cross-country skiing,...

, and ahead of Costa Rica's Arturo Kinch

Arturo Kinch

Arturo Kinch is a customer service representative for United Airlines who has won fame for his inspiring performances as Costa Rica's only skier in Winter Olympic Games history, most recently as a 49-year-old cross-country skier in the 2006 XX Olympic Winter Games.Born the seventh child in a...

.

At the 2006 Games, he competed in the 15km classical race. He finished 97th, with a time of 1:07:15.9.

External links

• "Unlikely Olympian becomes unlikely hero", Badger Herald, February 21, 2002
• "Ski de fond : Prawat Nagvajara veut battre les Africains", Courier International
• "A few brave men", BBC, February 20, 2002
• "It's the taking part that counts", Duncan Mackay, The Guardian, February 8, 2002
• "Eleven on their own in Games", Associated Press, February 13, 2002