Sverre Farstad, Hjalmar Andersen and Henry Wahl were known as the “Falken Trio”, for their Trondheim club, SK Falken. With sports having come to a standstill during the war, Farstad trained as a gymnast and weightlifter in Trondheim basements throughout the German occupation. After the war, he emerged as a strong competitor in many sports, including weightlifting (twice runner-up in the Norwegian Championships) and rowing (a bronze in the national championships). However, his strongest suit remained speed skating. Arguably the world’s best 1500 m skater for some years, he won the event three times at the European Championships, once at the World Championships and once at the Olympics. After placing third at the Europeans and second at the Worlds in 1947, he won his first major allround tournament in 1949, taking the European Championships. Held at the high-altitude rink of Davos, Farstad broke all his personal bests to set what would later be the first recognized as an Allround World Record. Continuing to race until 1951, he never again qualified for an international championship. Until his death in 1978, Farstad worked as a journalist for Arbeiderbladet. He was also active as a speed skating coach, notably coaching Italy in the late 1950s.
Personal Bests: 500 – 41.8 (1949); 1500 – 2:13.9 (1949); 5000 – 8:15.4 (1949); 10000 – 17:39.7 (1949).
Norway