Nels Nelsen

Nels Nelsen
Nels Nelsen (1925)
nation	Canada
birthday	June 3, 1894
place of birth	Salangen ,  Norway
date of death	June 3, 1943
Place of death	Field , Canada
Career
End of career	1932

Nels Nelsen (born on June 3, 1894 in Salangen , Norway as Nils Johan Nilsen ; died on June 3, 1943 in Field , British Columbia , Canada ; also Nels Nelson ) was a Canadian ski jumper of Norwegian origin. He was one of the world's best ski jumpers during the 1920s and held the world record in this sport between 1925 and 1930 with a distance of over 73 meters . Born in Salangen, Norway, he moved to Revelstoke with his family in 1912 . He was later credited with bringing ski jumping to Canada. He made his debut in 1915 at the nearby " Big Hill " Revelstokes. In the following years he took part in competitions in the United States and Canada and was Canadian champion five times. Although he held the world record at the time, he was not allowed to participate in the 1928 Winter Olympics.

In addition to his sporting career, Nelsen worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway and therefore relocated to North Vancouver , where he started a family. In a hunting accident in 1933, Nelsen lost a hand and for this reason had to end his career as a ski jumper. He remained in the sport as an official, became President of the Western Canada Amateur Ski Association and later Vice President of the Canadian Amateur Ski Association . In 1948 the "Big Hill" in Revelstoke was renamed "Nels Nelsen Hill". In 1971 Nelsen was inducted into the US National Ski Hall of Fame and in 1983 into the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame .

Origin and personal

He was born on June 3, 1894 under the name Nils Johan Nilsen as the eldest of six children of a Norwegian family in Salangen . As a child, Nelsen was active as a ski jumper and skier. After his family emigrated to Revelstoke, he Anglicized his name. His brother Ivind Nilsen was also active as a ski jumper. Nelsen married Emma Pickard and the couple had ten children. Except for a short time as a ski technician, he worked as a brakeman and train driver for the Canadian Pacific Railway .

Career in ski jumping

Nelsen during a jump on the " Big Hill " later named after him (1916)

In a competition on the "Big Hill" in 1916 Nelsen won and flew the hill record of that time with a distance of 56 meters. By continuously increasing widths in the following years, he held this record until 1932. Also in 1916 he won a nationwide competition in ski jumping, the Championship of Canada Ski Jumping Contest . He was able to defend this title four times until 1920. In addition, he achieved the Canadian amateur record in 1920 and exceeded it in 1921 and 1923. Thus, between 1916 and 1925, Nelsen was the most successful ski jumper in Canada.

In the following time, Nelsen traveled through the United States and Canada to take part in professional ski jumping competitions. Between 1917 and 1922 he was the Canadian champion five times, and he held the Canadian distance record until 1932.

Nelsen on his world record flight in 1925

At the Winter Carnival Tournament 1925, Nelsen, suffering from influenza , flew a new world record on his home mountain with a distance of over 73 meters . This record was only exceeded in 1930 by the Swiss Adolph Badrutt , who achieved 75 meters on the Bernina-Roseggschanze in Pontresina . In 1932 Bob Lymburne brought the record back to Revelstoke by jumping 82 meters. Although this was accepted as a record, at that time it was nothing special to achieve a world record due to the ever larger hills and consequently more and more jumps, so it was not mentioned any further.

Nelsen and Melbourne McKenzie planned to travel to St. Moritz for the 1928 Winter Olympics . To finance this trip, they wanted to work on a freighter. However, the plans were thwarted by British delegates, so Nelsen never took part in the Winter Olympics. In the winter of 1932 he worked as a ski instructor in Québec , a few months later he lost an arm in a hunting accident and had to end his career as a ski jumper.

Besides the active career

After his arrival in Revelstoke, Nelsen was instrumental in founding and establishing the Revelstoke Ski Club and the "Big Hill" in Mount Revelstoke National Park . In 1927 he supported the construction of a ski jump on Grouse Mountain near North Vancouver . After his accident and the associated end of his career, he worked for the Field Ski Club. He advocated strict compliance with amateur behavior.

The organization of skiing in Canada was the responsibility of the Canadian Amateur Ski Association (CASA) and the Western Canada Amateur Ski Association (WCASA). After years of rivalry between the two associations, Nelsen, as president of the WCASA, became part of the negotiations for a merger. As a result, Nelsen became Vice President of CASA in 1934.

Death and fame

The remains of Nels-Nelsen-Hill (2017)

Nels Nelsen died on June 3, 1943 - the day of his 49th birthday - after a heart attack. After a renovation, the "Big Hill" was renamed "Nels-Nelsen-Hill" in 1949. Nelsen himself was inducted into the National Ski Hall of Fame posthumously in 1971 , the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame in 1983, and the BC Sports Hall of Fame the following year .

literature

• Harold Anson: Jumping through time . Port Hole Publications, Florence 2010, ISBN 978-0-9768107-7-3 (English).
• Arne Thoresen: Lengst gjennom lufta . Versal, Oslo 2007, ISBN 978-82-8188-030-6 (Norwegian).
• Chic Scott: Powder Pioneers . Rocky Mountain Books, Surrey 2005, ISBN 1-894765-64-8 (English, google.de ).

Individual evidence

1. ↑ https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/bc/revelstoke/decouvrir-discover/hist/ski
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Chic Scott: Powder Pioneers . Rocky Mountain Books, Surrey 2005, ISBN 1-894765-64-8 (English, google.de ).
3. ↑ ^{a b} Leif-Morten Olaussen: Innførte skisporten i OL-byens Vancouver (Norwegian) . In: Fremover , February 27, 2010. 
4. ↑ ^{a b} Revelstoke Museum and Archives: The Big Hill and world records: 1915-1933 . Virtual Museum. Archived from the original on February 14, 2011. Retrieved on February 14, 2011.
5. ↑ Harold Anson: Jumping through time . Port Hole Publications, Florence 2010, ISBN 978-0-9768107-7-3 (English).
6. ↑ ^{a b} Canadian Ski Hall of Fame : Nels Nelsen (PDF) Archived from the original on February 15, 2011. Retrieved on February 15, 2011.
7. ↑ ^{a b} National Ski Hall of Fame : Nels Nelson . Archived from the original on February 15, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
8. ↑ ^{a b} BC Sports Hall of Fame : Nels Nelsen . Archived from the original on February 15, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
9. ^ Revelstoke Museum and Archives: Re-opening of the Nels Nelsen Hill and the Tournament of Champions . Virtual Museum. Archived from the original on February 14, 2011. Retrieved on February 14, 2011.