Hjalmar Andersen
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Hjalmar "Hjallis" Johan Andersen (12 March 1923 – 27 March 2013) was a speed skater from
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 ...
who won three gold medals at the 1952 Winter Olympic Games of
Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
, Norway. He was the only triple gold medalist at the 1952 Winter Olympics, and as such, became the most successful athlete there. Nicknamed ''King Glad'' for his famous cheerful mood, he was one of Norway's most popular sportsmen ever. Four statues of him were raised during his lifetime; in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...
,
Hamar Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...
, Rødøy and outside
Bislett Stadium Bislett Stadium () is a sports stadium in Oslo, Norway. Bislett is Norway's most well known sports arena internationally, with 15 speed skating world records and more than 50 track and field world records having been set here. The original stadi ...
in Oslo. He was honored with a funeral at the state’s expense.


Early life

Andersen was born on Rødøya, an island off the coast of
Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...
in Norway, where his mother hailed from. His father, who originally was from Hammerfest, was a
boatswain A boatswain ( , ), bo's'n, bos'n, or bosun, also known as a deck boss, or a qualified member of the deck department, or the third hand on a fishing vessel, is the most senior Naval rating, rate of the deck department and is responsible for the ...
. While Andersen was still a toddler, the family moved to Lademoen, a working-class neighborhood in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...
, where sport and friendship was an important part of life. Per Jorsett
Hjalmar Andersen
Store Norske Leksikon, retrieved 29 March 2013
He began speed skating at the age of 10, and became a member of the sports club Falken. The club was part of the Workers' Sports Federation (AIF), and the first competitions he participated in were small, local competitions organized by the AIF. Other members of the club were Sverre Farstad and Henry Wahl; later Andersen, Farstad and Wahl would be known by the nickname The Falken Trio. After the German occupation of Norway in 1940, when Andersen was 17 years old, all organized sports competitions were halted as a result of the sports boycott against the Nazi regime. Like others of his generation, he had to wait until the winter of 1946 to take up his sports career again. Professionally, he began working as a delivery boy in a sports store after having completed the folkeskole at about 14. He later worked as a lorry driver for several years. In 1950, when he was at the height of his speed skating career, he opened his own sports store in Trondheim, which he ran until 1960.


Career

He made his international debut at the 1948 Winter Olympic Games of St. Moritz,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, winning the qualifying race for 1500 m, but he was still not selected for the Norwegian team for this distance. He was selected for the 10000 m team, but because of the terrible ice conditions he did not finish the race. During the European Championship in Davos he noted a personal best at 2:16.4 at 1,500 m and set a new world record in the 10,000 m with 16:57.4. He placed second overall in the championship. Andersen was the best skater of the world in the period of 1950 to 1952. In each of those three years, he became World Allround Champion, making him one of only five male skaters to have won this title in three consecutive years – the other four being
Oscar Mathisen Oscar Wilhelm Mathisen (4 October 1888 – 10 April 1954) was a Norway, Norwegian speed skating, speed skater and celebrity, almost rivalling Roald Amundsen and Fridtjof Nansen as symbols for a young nation (Norway became independent in 1905). ...
(1912–1914), Ard Schenk (1970–1972), Eric Heiden (1977–1979), and Sven Kramer (2007–2010). In those same years, 1950–1952, he was also European Allround Champion and Norwegian Allround Champion, thus winning the "triple" (World, European, and National Allround Championships) for three consecutive years. In addition, he also set three world records in those three years. A notable event in his career was the European Championship in 1951 at
Bislett Stadium Bislett Stadium () is a sports stadium in Oslo, Norway. Bislett is Norway's most well known sports arena internationally, with 15 speed skating world records and more than 50 track and field world records having been set here. The original stadi ...
. Speed skating was immensely popular in Norway at the time and 25,000 people cheered the skaters during the two-day event.
King Haakon VII Haakon VII (; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was King of Norway from 18 November 1905 until his death in 1957. The future Haakon VII was born in Copenhagen as Prince Carl of Denmark. He was the second son of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess ...
was present at the event.Øystein Andersen
Her er sannheten om tidenes skøytebilde
Dagbladet, 27 March 2013
During the event, Andersen won the three first distances and was a clear favourite to become allround champion before the 10,000 metres. After 11 laps, however, Andersen fell. He tried to continue on, but one of his skates had been damaged and he was taken off the rink. Andersen’s fall was soon linked to a flash used by photographer Johan Brun from
Dagbladet () is one of Norway's largest newspapers and is published in the Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. It has 1,400,000 daily readers on mobile, web and paper. Traditionally it was considered the main liberal newspaper of Norway, with a ...
at the moment of the fall. It was decided to let Andersen run the 10,000 metres for a second time, while a jury was to consider whether the second run should actually count. In the meantime, Brun rushed to Dagbladet to get his film developed. He returned with the photo he had taken when the fall happened. It showed that Andersen had his eyes shut at the time. The jury concluded that the flash had blinded Andersen. The result from his second 10,000 metres run became official and he won both the 10,000 metres and the overall championship. Brun and Andersen had friendly contact later in life. Brun has stated that the electronic flash he had used couldn't possibly have blinded Andersen, and he believes the jury made a mistake due to lack of knowledge of photography equipment. In a speed skating international between Norway and the rest of the world at Hamar on 10 February 1952, Hjalmar Andersen set a world record in the 10,000 meters with the time 16:32.6. It was the first time a speed skater took less than 40 seconds to complete every lap in the 10,000 meters, and it was regarded as an amazing world record. In Norway, the record achieved legendary status, and is often referred to as the best known sports record ever. The record stood for eight years, until Kjell Bäckman broke it. The record created enormous interest in Andersen in the 1952 Winter Olympics that started in Oslo one week later.Per Opsahl and Ingrid Hvidsten
«Hjallis» var superstjernen som måtte skjermes fra OL-troppen på hjemmebane i 1952
VG, 27 March 2013
On 17 February, Andersen won his first Olympic gold medal in the 5,000 meters with a new Olympic record. The next day, he won gold in the 1,500 meters, and he ended the competition by setting a new Olympic record in winning the 10,000 meters on 19 February. The three days of skating competitions were attended by 75,000 enthusiastic spectators. Andersen quit skating after the 1952 Olympics, but he was talked into giving it a new try in 1954. He became Norwegian champion for the fourth time and won both the 5,000 m and 10000 m at the European Championships in
Davos Davos (, ; or ; ; Old ) is an Alpine resort town and municipality in the Prättigau/Davos Region in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of (). Davos is located on the river Landwasser, in the Rhaetian ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
that year, winning silver in the overall standings. He qualified for the 1956 Olympics and earned sixth place on the 10,000 m. During his career, he set four
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 ...
s. His 10,000 m world record in 1949 (16:57.4) was the first official world record below 17 minutes for the distance. As it was skated outside of Norway, it did not count as a Norwegian national record, of which Andersen set eight during his skating career. Andersen represented ''Sportsklubben Falken'' (Sports Club Falcon) in Trondheim.


Later years

After he ended his skating career, Andersen moved to
Tønsberg Tønsberg (), historically Tunsberg, is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tønsberg Municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located about south-southwest of the capital city of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near ...
. In addition to his skating triumphs, Andersen was also a great
cyclist Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...
on a national level, and he was awarded the Egebergs Ærespris in 1951 for his achievements in speed skating and cycling. He started a long and joyful career in "the welfare service for merchant shipping", which he worked with until he reached retirement age in 1990. Earning the nickname "Kong Glad" (English: King Happy") and known for his sense of humour, he was a popular speaker.Siri Gedde-Dahl et al
Idrettspresidenten: – Glad han fikk hedersprisen
Adressa.no, 27 March 2013
He also published several books, partly memories from his sports career and partly humoristic stories. He received the King's Medal of Merit in gold in 1998 and The Honor Prize at Idrettsgallaen together with Knut Johannesen in 2013, just two months before his death.


Personal life

Andersen married his teenage sweetheart, Gerd, and they lived together until she died in 2004. They had three children.


Death and funeral

On 25 March 2013, Andersen suffered a serious fall in his home in
Tønsberg Tønsberg (), historically Tunsberg, is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tønsberg Municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located about south-southwest of the capital city of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near ...
, Norway, was rushed to the hospital and never regained consciousness. He died two days later on 27 March, two weeks after his 90th birthday. His survivors include three children and grandson Fredrik van der Horst, a speedskater who represented Norway at the
2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXI Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Vancouver 2010 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held from February 12 to 28, 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with ...
in
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. The
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decided that Hjalmar Andersen should be honored with a funeral at the state’s expense. The third athlete to be given this honor since 1998. Prime minister Jens Stoltenberg stated that “Hjalmar Andersen became a sport legend at a time when speed skating was part of the Norwegian identity, and got involved in the work for sailors at time when ship transport was interwoven with the nation’s soul. In this way, 'Hjallis' contributed to forming post-war Norway in an important way and won a huge place in the hearts of several generations of Norwegians.” The funeral ceremony in Tønsberg Cathedral on 4 April 2013 was attended by King Harald V and by Norway's Prime minister Jens Stoltenberg who gave a speech.Lillian Holden et al
Statsministeren: – Alle som er glade i Norge er glade i «Hjallis»
VG, 4 April 2013


Medals and Records

An overview of medals won by Andersen at important championships he participated in, listing the years in which he won each: Over the course of his career, Andersen skated four world records: Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com Norwegian records Note that in the days Hjalmar skated a Norwegian record could only be skated in Norway itself, so his Davos world record could not become a Norwegian record as well. Personal records To put these personal records in perspective, the ''WR'' column lists the official world records on the dates that Andersen skated his personal records.


Ranking as speed skater

Andersen had a final Adelskalender score of 187.446 points. He held first place on the Adelskalender for 708 days between 1952 and 1954.


Awards

*
Morgenbladet is Norway's oldest daily newspaper, covering politics, culture and science, now a weekly news magazine primarily directed at well-educated readers. The magazine is notable for its opinion section featuring contributions exclusively from Norweg ...
s gold medal, 1949 * Egebergs Ærespris, 1951 * Fearnleys olympiske ærespris, 1952 * Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year, 1952 * Olavstatuetten (awarded by
Adresseavisen (; commonly known as ''Adressa'') is a regional newspaper published daily, except Sundays, in Trondheim, Norway. The paper has been in circulation since 1767 and is one of the oldest newspapers in Norway after Norske Intelligenz-Seddeler which ...
), 1976 * King's Medal of Merit in gold, 1998 * The Honor Prize at Idrettsgallaen, 2013


Books

*Hjalmar Andersen: ''Harde løp'' (1951). Self-published. *Hjalmar Andersen:''Siste runde'' (1952). Norsk idrettsforlag. *Hjalmar Andersen and Sverre E. Mortensen: ''Hva idretten ga meg'' (1983). Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. *Hjalmar Andersen and Sverre E. Mortensen: ''Medaljens bakside'' (1985). Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. *Hjalmar Andersen: ''Den gode, gamle, gale istida'' (1989). Det Norske Samlaget. *Hjalmar Andersen and Knut-Anders Løken: ''Gull og glis'' (1990) Det Norske Samlaget.


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Eng, Trond. ''All Time International Championships, Complete results 1889 – 2002''. Askim, Norway: WSSSA Skøytenytt, 2002. * Eng, Trond and Teigen, Magne. ''Norske Mesterskap på Skøyter, 1894 – 2005''. Askim/Veggli, Norway: WSSSA-Norge, 2005. * Eng, Trond; Gjerde, Arild; Teigen, Magne and Petersen, Preben Gorud. ''Norsk Skøytestatistikk Gjennom Tidene 1999''. Askim/Skedsmokorset/Veggli, Norway: WSSSA-Norge, 1999. * Teigen, Magne. ''Komplette Resultater Norske Mesterskap på Skøyter, 1887 – 1989''. Veggli, Norway: WSSSA-Norge, 1989.


External links

* *
Hjalmar Andersen is dead NRK (Norwegian)

Hjalmar Andersen at SpeedSkatingStats.com

Hjalmar Anderson
''Deutsche Eisschnelllauf Gemeinschaft e. V.'' (German Skating Association). * *
National Championships results
''Norges Skøyteforbund'' (Norwegian Skating Association).
Development of Norwegian records 1880–2007
''Norges Skøyteforbund'' (Norwegian Skating Association). {{DEFAULTSORT:Andersen, Hjalmar 1923 births 2013 deaths Norwegian male speed skaters Olympic speed skaters for Norway Speed skaters at the 1948 Winter Olympics Speed skaters at the 1952 Winter Olympics Speed skaters at the 1956 Winter Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Norway World record setters in speed skating Norwegian humorists Olympic medalists in speed skating Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit in gold Accidental deaths from falls Accidental deaths in Norway Medalists at the 1952 Winter Olympics World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists Sportspeople from Tønsberg 20th-century Norwegian sportsmen