Clas Thunberg

Arnold Clas Robert Thunberg ( born April 5, 1893 in Helsinki, † April 28, 1973 ) was a Finnish speed skater. With five Olympic victories and five titles in the all-around world championships, he is one of the most successful skaters in history.

Career

Clas Thunberg only began at the age of 18 years with the speed skating. Previously, he was a notorious party-goers, the alcohol and cigarettes was inclined. From the age of 28 years in which he played his first European Championships, he was for a decade the most successful speed skater. His greatest strengths were in the shorter distances. So he could never win an international race over 10,000 meters. Nevertheless, he was all-rounder enough to win 1924 Olympic silver over this distance. At the Olympic Games in 1924 in Chamonix Thunberg won also the bronze medal over 500 meters and was Olympic champion in the 1500 meters, 5000 meters and the once discharged at the Olympic Games all-around competition. Two more gold medals were awarded at the 1928 Olympic Games in St. Moritz, 500 meters and 1500 meters. With 34 years he has been so far the oldest Olympic gold medalist in speed skating. With two Olympic Games, he was also the most successful athlete in 1928, he shared the honor with Johan Grøttumsbråten. With a total of five gold medals and a silver and bronze medal each Thunberg is the most successful male skater of Olympic history. At the 1932 Olympic Games in Lake Placid, he refused to participate, as the organizers conducted the race as a mass start and not as duels.

In the period 1923-1931 the Finn won five times the all-around world championships. So he set the record of Oscar Mathisen and even surpassed it thanks to a further silver and bronze medal. By 2013, when the Dutch Sven Kramer won his sixth title, Thunberg, making it the most successful speed skaters at the World Championships. He was also four victories at the European Championships.

Thunberg provided a total of four world records, of which the best time over the rarely but spilled distance of 1000 meters to 1930 was only 25 years later improved by Yevgeny Grishin.

Despite his impressive career statistics Thunberg never led to the Peerage. This lists skaters based on their best times of all relevant distances and converts them into an all-around total. Thunberg's maximum value in the Peerage was 192.633 points. Oscar Mathisens best time on the longest line was for Thunberg out of reach. Mathisen, although only five years older than Thunberg, changed after the First World War turned professional, so that the two speed skating sizes never in an ISU competition clashed.

Thunberg was also called " Nurmi of ice ", in reference to Paavo Nurmi, his quick compatriot without skates.

Personal Best

¹ = world record at the time of the run; ² = unofficial world record at the time of the run