Henry Hall (skier)
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 27, 1893 Ishpeming, Michigan, US |
| Died | April 17, 1986 (aged 93) Loveland, Colorado, US |
| Resting place | Loveland Burial Park |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Ski jumping |
| Club | Ishpeming Ski Club, Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club, Denver Rocky Mountain Ski Club, Detroit Ski Club |
Henry Christian Hall (February 27, 1893 – April 17, 1986) was the first person born in America to win an international ski jumping meet, and the first person internationally to jump over 200 feet. He twice set the world record for ski jumping.[1][2]
Ski Jumping Highlights
[edit]Born in Ishpeming, Michigan of Norwegian immigrant parents, he learned ski jumping along with all of his five brothers.[3] Hall became a strict vegetarian under the guidance of his friend Anders Haugen.[4]
Hall won the farthest distance ski jump award at the annual U.S. national championship tournament in 1914 (along with his brother Carl),[5] 1915,[6] and 1924.[7]
In 1916 Hall won the national ski jumping championship,[8] and in 1915, 1917 and 1920 was second place.[9][10] At the 1917 Steamboat Springs Ski Festival, he achieved a leap of 203 feet, which was ten feet better than the previous world record held by Ragnar Omtvedt.[11][12][13] In 1921, Henry Hall again achieved the world record with a jump of 229 feet on the Nels Nelsen Hill in Canada.[14] In 1925 Hall won the annual Norge Ski Club tournament.[15]
Club and hill development
[edit]Hall helped to establish Colorado's Hot Sulphur Springs Winter Sports Club in 1910.[16] With his brothers he started the Detroit Ski Club. Hall built ski jumps in 1923 at Northville, Michigan,[17] in 1926 at Rochester, Michigan,[18] and in 1936 at Brighton, Michigan.[19]
Legacy
[edit]In 1967, he was inducted into the US National Ski Hall of Fame.[20] The "Henry Hall Cup" is an award for a promising young ski jumper at the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club. In 2001 he was inducted into Norway's Sverresborg Trøndelag Folkemuseum, and into the Colorado Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2006.[21]
Ski jumping world records
[edit]| Date | Hill | Location | Metres | Feet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2, 1917 | Howelsen Hill | Steamboat Springs, United States | 61.9 | 203 |
| February 9, 1921 | Nels Nelsen Hill | Revelstoke, Canada | 69.8 | 229 |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Menke, Frank Grant (1953) The Schenley Sports Encyclopedia Vol 4:774,777,780 NY: Book Production Co. OCLC 4924427
- ^ Ellis, David H. and Catherine H. (2009) Steamboat Springs Arcadia ISBN 9780738570174 pg 13
- ^ Hall, Fay (2005) Henry Christian Hall: America's First World Champion Ski Jumper Remembers Flying Without Wings OCLC 58790622
- ^ "Vegetarianism" (PDF). Life and Health: National Health Journal. 1: 37. 1973.
- ^ “Ski Jumping” Chicago Daily News Almanac for 1915 pg 326
- ^ “Ski Jumping” Almanac and Yearbook for 1916 The St. Paul Dispatch and Pioneer Press pg 463
- ^ “National Championships” Chicago Daily News Almanac for 1925 pg 639
- ^ "Henry Hall Wins in Ski Tournament" Bismarck Daily Tribune, February 6, 1916, pg 1
- ^ "World's Champ Winner of St. Paul Ski Event" Albuquerque Morning Journal pg 4
- ^ “Ski Jumping” Chicago Daily News Almanac for 1921 pg 450
- ^ "Henry Hall Makes World's Record Ski Jump of 203 Feet" Ward County Independent March 8, 1917, pg 1
- ^ Pontti, John and Luostari, Kenneth (2000) Midwest Skiing: A Glance Back Arcadia Publishing ISBN 9780738501246 pg 64, 47
- ^ Utah Ski Archives Photos at University of Utah
- ^ Anson, Harold (2010) Jumping through time – A history of ski jumping in the United States and Southwest Canada Florence, Oregon: Port Hole Publications ISBN 9780976810773 p36
- ^ "Cary (Ill.) Tournament" Chicago Daily News Almanac for 1926 pg 645
- ^ Lund, Morten (1996) "Barney McLean" Skiing Heritage vol 8 #3:24
- ^ Hoffman, Jack W. (1976) Northville, the First 100 Years page 206
- ^ Larsen, Deborah J. (2018) "Olympic Ski Jumping in Rochester" Rochester Media
- ^ Pratt, Genal (2012) The Brighton Area Brighton Area Historical Society page 103
- ^ “Henry Hall” at skihall.com
- ^ "Henry Christian Hall" at CO Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame
External links
[edit]- Colorado Tread of Pioneers photos: 1917 triumph, 1917 with skis, 1917 jump, jump, 1963