Celebrated
One hundred years ago today, Kristiania Skøiteklub arranged a magnificent illuminated party at Frogner Stadion to celebrate their first world champion. The club’s figure skaters made a show, kids were forming torch parades, there were more speeches and tremendous cheering from the packed terraces. At Logen’s banquet hall (today’s “Gamle Logen”) there was champagne and yet more speeches. All this no doubt cost twice as much as three third class tickets through Europe and some meagre pocket money, if not more. But no doubt it brought in at least tenfold, as Oscar’s victory had caused a tremendous stir in the capital. His young age, the manner of his victory—a near-perfect carbon copy of Østlund’s sensational victory in Davos ten years before, and, perhaps most of all, the fact that he had beaten the Swedish European champion, gave him instant stardom. It helped too that he was theirs, one of them, a common lad, having skated, worked, and suffered with them, fatherless as he was. The city was ready for another Paulsen-mania.
Oscar sat through it all, and enjoyed it as we might well have expected him to. The payback for all the struggle, the privation, all the worries and their sleepless nights during their third class voyage through Europe. But his face still was swollen, discoloured and painful, and suddenly he couldn’t help himself from bursting into laughter, almost couldn’t help himself, as his inner eye conjured the vision of the three of them—representatives of the nation—sitting in the darkest corner of the Stettiner Bahnhof restaurant, mouths full of bread and Schweizerwurst, setting up their best innocent looks.
5000 m before and after Davos 1908:
1.Jaap Eden 8.37,6 94 1.Jaap Eden 8.37,6 94 2.Einar Halvorsen 8.39,6 94 2.Einar Halvorsen 8.39,6 94 3.Johan Schwartz 8.51,2 02 3.Johan Scwartz 8.51,2 02 4.Peder Østlund 8.51,8 00 4.Peder Østlund 8.51,8 00 5.Rudolf Gundersen 8.54,0 02 5.Rudolf Gundersen 8.54,0 02 6.Franz F Wathén 8.58,0 03 6.Oscar Mathisen 8.55,4 08 7.Oscar Mathisen 8.59,0 07 7.Franz F Wathén 8.58,0 03 8.Filip Petersen 9.00,6 94 8.Filip Petersen 9.00,6 94 9.Oluf Steen 9.00,8 07 9.Oluf Steen 9.00,8 07 10.Mauritz Öholm 9.01,2 08 10.Mauritz Öholm 9.01,2 08 11.Jan C Greve 9.01,8 01 11.Antti Wicklund 9.01,4 08 12.Thomas Bohrer 9.02,6 08 12.Gunnar Strömstén 9.01,6 08 13.Edvard Engelsaas 9.02,8 00 13.Jan C Greve 9.01,8 01 14.Oscar Fredriksen 9.04,2 95 14.Thomas Bohrer 9.02,6 08 15.Julius Seyler 9.04,6 98 15.Edvard Engelsaas 9.02,8 00 16.Peter Sinnerud 9.07,8 95 16.Oscar Fredriksen 9.04,2 95 17.Antti Wiklund 9.08,0 06 17.Julius Seyler 9.04,6 98 18.Gunnar Strömstén 9.08,2 07 18.Martin Sæterhaug 9.04,6 08 19.Jussi Wiinikainen 9.08,6 01 19.Arne Schrey 9.07,6 08 20.Wilhelm Sensburg 9.09,6 98 20.Peter Sinnerud 9.07,8 95 21.Olaf Hansen 9.11,4 05 21.Jussi Wiinikainen 9.08,6 01 22.Jan T Banning 9.11,6 98 22.Wilhelm Sensburg 9.09,6 98 23.Karinius Larsen Stai 9.13,2 95 23.Olaf Hansen 9.11,4 05 24.Ole Østlund 9.13,4 95 24.Jan T Banning 9.11,6 98 25.Olaf Norseng 9.13,6 94 25.Karinius Larsen Stai 9.13,2 95 26.Wilhelm Mauseth 9.14,4 97 26.Ole Østlund 9.13,4 95 27.Karl Bernhard Olsen 9.14,6 94 27.Olaf Norseng 9.13,6 94 28.Sigurd Mathisen 9.14,8 02 28.Wilhelm Mauseth 9.14,4 97 29.Gustaf Estlander 9.15,0 98 29.Karl Bernhard Olsen 9.14,6 94 30.Rudolf Ericsson 9.15,8 92 30.Sigurd Mathisen 9.14,8 02
A less afflicted list than the 1500 list. Only two relegated from the top 30—but both of them champions! And a strange list, so dominated still by the almost painful memory of that mad duel almost a generation ago.
10000 m before and after Davos 1908:
1.Peder Østlund 17.50,6 00 1.Peder Østlund 17.50,6 00 2.Jaap Eden 17.56,0 95 2.Jaap Eden 17.56,0 95 3.Johan Schwartz 18.09,4 02 3.Oscar Mathisen 18.01,8 08 4.Mauritz Öholm 18.24,0 08 4.Gunnar Strömstén 18.04,0 08 5.Thomas Bohrer 18.29,8 08 5.Johan Schwartz 18.09,4 02 6.Julius Seyler 18.35,0 96 6.Thomas Bohrer 18.21,2 08 7.Sigurd Mathisen 18.35,2 02 7.Mauritz Öholm 18.24,0 08 8.Rudolf Gundersen 18.41,0 02 7.Antti Wiklund 18.24,0 08 9.Oscar Mathisen 18.43,4 08 9.Martin Sæterhaug 18.28,6 08 10.Franz F Wathén 18.44,0 02 10.Julius Seyler 18.35,0 96 10.Franz Schilling 18.44,0 07 11.Sigurd Mathisen 18.35,2 02 12.Jan C Greve 18.46,4 00 12.Rudolf Gundersen 18.41,0 02 13.Oluf Steen 18.47,4 07 13.Franz F Wathén 18.44,0 02 14.Peter Sinnerud 18.50,0 95 13.Franz Schilling 18.44,0 07 14.Karinius Larsen Stai 18.50,0 95 15.Jan C Greve 18.46,4 00 16.C Coen de Koning 18.50,2 06 16.Oluf Steen 18.47,4 07 17.Harald Hagen 18.52,2 94 17.Peter Sinnerud 18.50,0 95 18.Nikolaj Krjukov 18.53,0 98 17.Karinius Larsen Stai 18.50,0 95 19.Gustaf Estlander 18.55,8 98 19.C Coen de Koning 18.50,2 06 20.Martin Sæterhaug 18.59,8 08 20.Harald Hagen 18.52,2 94 21.Aimar Olsen 19.03,2 02 21.Nikolaj Krjukov 18.53,0 98 22.Nikolaj Sedov 19.03,6 06 21.Jean Pettersson 18.53,0 08 23.Filip Petersen 19.05,4 95 23.Arne Schrey 18.55,2 08 24.Arthur Helenius 19.06,4 98 24.Gustaf Estlander 18.55,8 98 25.Jussi Wiinikainen 19.09,4 02 25.Aimar Olsen 19.03,2 02 26.Gunnar Strömstén 19.09,6 07 26.Nikolaj Sedov 19.03,6 06 27.Carl Frantzen 19.12,8 02 27.Filip Petersen 19.05,4 95 28.Frithiof Ericsson 19.13,4 95 28.Arthur Helenius 19.06,4 98 29.Olaf Hansen 19.14,4 05 29.Ejnar Sørensen 19.07,4 08 30.Konrad Liljeberg 19.15,0 03 30.Jussi Wiinikainen 19.09,4 02
A lot of damage wrought here. Four eliminated, though no champions. Another 29th place for Denmark; when will we see the next one?
I have omitted Edgington’s 18.56,6 from 1904, as it’s considered doubtful. But maybe this is unfair. Charles must have been happy when he managed to skate 18.56,6. Who are we to deflower him?
Sedov still is in, however. I wonder what world record we would have had if he ever had been within a 150 km range of Davos, or any other ice that was any good at all for that matter.
Any comments/corrections/additions/subtractions most welcome.
And great thanks to Preben for giving me the ability to do this!