Sofus Madsen

Norwegian sculptor Sofus Madsen was first educated as a plasterer by a sculptor and then studied at the Art Academy in København and subsequently in Berlin and Paris before he settled in Bergen in 1914. He decisively shaped the cityscape with his statues. He was, however, hardly known beyond Bergen. He mainly created human characters in the classicist style. In 1999 the Sofus Madsen Sculpture Museum was opened there including up to 180 of his sculptures, medallions, drawings, and tapestries. The museum also included some works by his wife Grethe Corneliussen Madsen.

For the sculpture competition in Paris in 1924, Madsen submitted a draft of a monument for modern sports. Here, the Runner, later commonly referred to as Sprinter, the central figure as part of the monument with reliefs on both sides. The Runner was later cast in bronze at the expense of sports fans and was placed in front of the Brann Stadium in Bergen in 1930. In 1952 and 2018, the sculpture was relocated in the stadium area for constructional reasons. Probably only a model in a smaller format was exhibited in Berlin.