Catherine "Kit" Klein (March 28, 1910 – April 13, 1985) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

speed skater.

Short biography

Kit Klein was born in Buffalo, New York and started competing on the local level. Later, Klein finished first in the 1500 metres event and third in the 500 metres competition at the

1932 Winter Olympics The 1932 Winter Olympics, officially known as the III Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Lake Placid 1932, were a winter multi-sport event in the United States, held in Lake Placid, New York, United States. The games opened on February ...

of Lake Placid, where speed skating for women was a

demonstration sport A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport which is played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This occurs commonly during the Olympic Games, but may also occur at other sporting events. Demonstration spor ...

. She also participated in the 1000 metres event but was eliminated in the heats. She also won the 1,000 m race, as well as the overall bronze medal, at the Unofficial World Allround Championships in Oslo, Norway in 1935. At the 1936 first official World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Sweden, Klein won gold. After the

1936 Winter Olympics The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games (german: IV. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 ( bar, Garmasch-Partakurch 1936), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 16 ...

, Klein toured Europe before sailing home. During the voyage home Klein actually threw her skates overboard to mark her retirement from competitive skating. Towards the end 1936, she married Dr. Thomas "Tom" Outland of Sayre, Pennsylvania and the couple settled down in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

. For a while, Klein toured around North America with the Ice Follies skating show. After her husband's retirement in 1967, they moved to Holmes Beach, Florida, where Catherine "Kit" Klein-Outland died in 1985 at the age of 75. Klein-Outland was inducted in the ''National Speedskating Hall of Fame'' in 1964, and posthumously in both the ''International Women's Sports Hall of Fame'' and the ''Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame'' in 1993.

Medals

An overview of medals won by Klein at important championships she participated in, listing the years in which she won each. Note that the World Allround Championships of 1935 were unofficial. Also note that speed skating for women was a

at the

of Lake Placid. The medals related to these unofficial and demonstration events are ''in italics''. Klein's championship wins included: * 1930 Buffalo City Championships * 1931 Buffalo City Championships * 1933 National Championships, held in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin * 1933 North American Championships * 1934 National Championships, held in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin * 1934 North American Indoor Championships, held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (the ''Jean Wilson Memorial Trophy'') * 1935 National Indoor Championships, held in St. Louis, Missouri * 1935 National Outdoor Championships, held in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin During the 1932 Winter Olympics, one of Klein's toughest opponents was Canadian skater Jean Wilson, who took gold on the 500 m and silver on the 1500 m. The following year, Wilson died from a progressive muscular disease at 23. The ''Jean Wilson Memorial Trophy'' was created in her honor.

World records

Over the course of her career, Klein skated two world records:

Personal records

To put these personal records in perspective, the ''WR'' column lists the official world records on the dates that Klein skated her personal records. Note that Klein's personal record on the 5000 m was not a world record because

Verné Lesche Verné Lesche, married Vanberg (11 October 1917 – 21 April 2002) was a speed skater from Finland who twice won the World Allround Championships. __NOTOC__ Lesche was born in Helsinki, Finland, and already skated a world record i ...

skated 10:15.3 at the same tournament.

External links

Historical World Records
from the ''International Skating Union''. Retrieved on 2007-08-27.

''The Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame''. Retrieved on 2007-08-27.

''Women's Sports Foundation''. Retrieved on 2007-08-27.

''The National Speedskating Museum and Hall of Fame''. Retrieved on 2007-08-27. * Timothy Evans
Kit Klein – World Champion Speed Skater
''Journal of Olympic History''. Volume 12, January 2004, Number 1, pp. 13–15. Retrieved on 2007-08-27. * Pictures of Kit Klein can be foun
here
an
here
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, Kit 1910 births 1985 deaths Olympic speed skaters of the United States Speed skaters at the 1932 Winter Olympics World record setters in speed skating Sportspeople from Buffalo, New York American female speed skaters People from Holmes Beach, Florida World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists 20th-century American women 20th-century American people