Gunnar Andersen

Gunnar Andersen started his football career with the IF Viking in Kristiania (now Oslo). In 1910 he transferred to local rivals Lyn, where he played as an inside left until 1924. With Lyn, which he captained for many years, he never won a title. When the club won his last title before World War I in 1911, he played his first season there but was injured when they won the final.

With the Norwegian national squad Andersen had his début in 1911. Until 1924, he won 46 caps – a record at the time - acting as captain in 37 matches since 1914. He also led the team as captain, when Norway won its first international match in 1918, a 3-1 over Denmark and when they won the Nordic championship in 1919. At the 1912 Olympic Games, he only played in the quarter-final against Denmark. Eight years later, Andersen returned to the Olympics and captained the Norwegian team in all three games including the sensational 3-1 victory in round one over England. After the Olympics, he was selected into the tournament’s “All Star Team”. After his career as a player, Andersen was a referee. As early as 1911 he became a member of the board of the Norwegian Football Federation and served from 1929-33 as member of the selection committee for the national team.

Andersen’s second preference was ski jumping. In 1912 he set a world record, jumping 47 metres on the Gustadbakken at Modum near Oslo. For his achievements in both sports, he was the first athlete to be awarded the Egebergs Ærespris in 1918.

In 1915, Andersen married Alfa Engerie Castora Holm. The couple had two daughters and one son. He worked as a bank manager and became eventually Deputy CEO at Andresens Bank, one of Norway’s largest commercial banks.