Bengt Olof Albert "Benkku" Sjöstedt (2 November 1906 – 16 July 1981) was a Finnish

hurdler Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today ...

. He equalled the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

for 110 m hurdles in 1931 and competed at the

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

and

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held du ...

Career

Sjöstedt was Finland's first international-level 110 m hurdler. He had a habit of toppling one or two hurdles in most races, which cost him several Finnish records; the rules at the time stated a time was invalid for record purposes if any hurdles were knocked down, although disqualification from the race itself wouldn't result unless three or more hurdles were knocked down. In 1926 Sjöstedt placed a close second to

Erik Wilén Erik Wilhelm "Erkka" Wilén (15 July 1898 – 23 July 1982) was a Finnish sprinter. He competed at the 1920, 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sp ...

at the Finnish championships; later that year he beat Wilén in a time of 15.3, under Wilén's Finnish record of 15.5, but he knocked down hurdles and thus missed out on a new record. In 1927 he won his first national title and placed a close third behind two Swedes,

Sten Pettersson Sten Karl Leopold "Sten-Pelle" Pettersson (11 September 1902 – 1 June 1984) was a Swedish track and field athlete who competed in sprint and hurdling events. He competed at the 1924, 1928 and 1932 Summer Olympics in the 110 and 400 m hurdles ...

and Carl-Axel Christiernsson, at the Finland-Sweden Athletics International; the Swedes were both Olympic finalists from 1924. Sjöstedt's time in that race was 15.0, but again the knock-down rule cost him the Finnish record. Sjöstedt ran a wind-aided 14.9 at the Finnish tryouts for the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

and was accordingly selected. At the Olympics he ran 15.0 in his heat and 15.1 in his semi-final; he failed to qualify for the final. Later that year he ran 15.4 in Tampere without knocking down a hurdle, his first official Finnish record. Sjöstedt stayed in consistent form in 1929 and 1930 before reaching his peak in 1931. He ran 14.6 without toppling hurdles twice that summer, but at the Finland-Sweden International he knocked down three hurdles and was disqualified, leaving the victory for Pettersson. He defeated Pettersson by more than three metres in a rematch at

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

on 5 September, equalling the world record with his time of 14.4. At the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Sjöstedt again failed to make the final, placing second in his heat with a time of 14.9 and fifth in his semi-final. He was no longer in his 1931 shape, lacked the consistency of the winning Americans and suffered from

sciatica Sciatica is pain going down the leg from the lower back. This pain may go down the back, outside, or front of the leg. Onset is often sudden following activities such as heavy lifting, though gradual onset may also occur. The pain is often desc ...

at the Olympics. Sjöstedt stayed in good shape for several more years after Los Angeles, running 14.6 to defeat Germany's

Erwin Wegner Erwin Wegner (5 April 1909 – 16 February 1945) was a German athlete, born in Stettin. Wegner won the silver medal at the 1934 European Championships in the 110 metres hurdles and competed in the Olympic Games as both a hurdler and a d ...

and

Willi Welscher Willi Welscher (1 August 1906 – 20 February 1987) was a German hurdler. He competed in the 110 metres hurdles at the 1932 Summer Olympics and the 1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympi ...

in a dual meet in 1935. His 1931 time of 14.4 remained the world record until 1934 and the Finnish national record until 1967, when Matti Harri and Antti Lanamäki both ran 14.3. Sjöstedt is the only Finn to have held a world record in a hurdling event.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sjostedt, Bengt 1906 births 1981 deaths Sportspeople from Raseborg Finnish male hurdlers Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Finland World record setters in athletics (track and field) Athletes from Uusimaa 20th-century Finnish sportsmen