Holger Sinding-Larsen was the only Norwegian medal winner in art competitions at the Olympic Games. Sinding-Larsen was educated in architecture at the technical universities of Oslo and Berlin. In his career he designed a church at Vålerenga (1902), a chapel at Holmenkollen, a museum at Tøyen (1904-17) and a church in Lomen (1914). From 1907-24, he was construction inspector at the University of Oslo, and was responsible for the restoration of the auditorium. He also led the restoration of the famed Fortress Akershus (1905-22). Based on his studies he published the ancient construction history of the Fortress in 1926. In addition, Sinding-Larsen was head of the national arts and crafts school for many years.
Sinding-Larsen was commissioned in 1919 to complement the planned national gymnastics school with sports fields and a stadium. The additional requirements demanded a rescheduling and were introduced into the submitted draft. One of the special challenges was to strictly separate the two sexes according to the views of the time. The built-up area should amount to 3,800 m², the enclosed space to 70,000 m³ and the areas for training and gymnastics in the building to 2,400 m². For the facade a granite cladding was planned. However, the design was not realized. The silver medal later disappeared from the Museum of Architecture, where it was kept after Sinding-Larsen’s death.
Norway