Gillis Grafström biography
Gillis Grafström, (born June 7, 1893, Stockholm, Sweden—died April 14, 1938, Potsdam, Germany), Swedish determine skater who received three Olympic gold medals and one silver medal. Considered among the finest skaters of obligatory figures, he was drawn to the game’s inventive precision fairly than the challenges of competitors.
Grafström received his first gold medal on the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium, regardless of breaking a skate and having to make use of an antiquated curly-toed pair as a alternative. The Antwerp gold medal was adopted by a gold in 1924 in Chamonix, France, and a gold in 1928 in St. Moritz, Switzerland, the place he skated on a swollen knee. At the 1932 Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, a second’s confusion over which determine he was to hint left him with the silver medal, shedding the gold to Austrian Karl Schäfer.
A skater who ignored most competitions however the Olympic Games, Grafström was recognized for his easy magnificence, his completely executed routines, and the sleek move of his skating. He was the primary to make the axel a managed bounce, as a result of its inventor, Axel Paulsen, had worn hockey skates when he carried out it. He additionally originated a number of spins—the flying sit spin and the Grafström spin, a variation of the camel spin. He skated simply 4 occasions for the world title and received thrice (1922, 1924, and 1929).
In addition to skating, Grafström was an architect, poet, and painter. With his spouse he acquired a world-renowned assortment of skating artwork and historic skating artifacts. He was a perfectionist with excessive aesthetic requirements, which he later utilized because the coach of Norwegian skating legend Sonja Henie, a three-time Olympic gold medalist.