Chris I. Christenson (1875–1943) was an American
figure skater
Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, with its introduction occurring at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic d ...
. He won the
United States Figure Skating Championships
The U.S. Figure Skating Championships are an annual figure skating competition organized by U.S. Figure Skating to crown the national champions of the United States. The first U.S. Championships were held in 1914 in New Haven, Connecticut, ...
in 1926 at 51 years old and he remains the oldest U.S. men's champion in history.
Chris Christenson was born in
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
. He and his family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, settling first in
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
and later in
St. Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...
. He began figure skating in 1914 at age 39. He joined the Twin City Figure Skating Club (which became the
Figure Skating Club of Minneapolis in 1929). Christenson went to the national championships six times between 1920 and 1926. In 1923 he was runner-up (Silver), in 1924 he finished in third place (Bronze) and in 1926 at
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
he won first place (Gold).
Results
References
External links
C. I. Christenson
*
1875 births
1943 deaths
American male single skaters
Sportspeople from Minnesota
Norwegian emigrants to the United States
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