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Niels Holst-Sørensen

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Niels Holst-Sørensen
Holst-Sørensen in 1946
Chief of the Royal Danish Air Force
In office
1 January 1970 – 26 May 1982
Preceded byH. J. Pagh
Succeeded byP. Thorsen
Personal details
Born(1922-12-19)19 December 1922
Sønder Felding, Herning, Denmark
Died24 October 2023(2023-10-24) (aged 100)
Spouse
Hjørdis Christiansen
(m. 1947)
Military service
Allegiance Denmark
Branch/service Royal Danish Army
 Royal Danish Air Force
Years of service1941–1987
RankMajor General
Sports career
Height178 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight70 kg (154 lb)
SportAthletics
Event(s)400 m, 800 m
ClubKøbenhavns Idræts Forening
Sports achievements and titles
Personal best(s)400 m – 47,6 (1944)
800 m – 1:48.9 (1943)[1]
Medal record
Representing  Denmark
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1946 Oslo 400 m
Silver medal – second place 1946 Oslo 800 m

Niels Holst-Sørensen (19 December 1922 – 24 October 2023) was a Danish athlete and air force officer, and a centenarian. He served as the commander-in-chief of the Royal Danish Air Force from 1970 to 1982, and as Denmark's military representative to NATO from 1982 to 1986.[2] He won gold and silver medals at the 1946 European Athletics Championships and served as a member of the International Olympic Committee from 1977 to 2002.[2]

Athletic career

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Holst-Sørensen's first major international meeting was the 1946 European Championships, which took place in Oslo. Holst-Sørensen won the gold medal in the 400 metres with a time of 47.9 seconds.[3] He won a silver medal over 800 metres, finishing a tenth of a second behind the Swedish athlete Rune Gustafsson in a time of 1:51.1.[3] He was also a member of the Danish team which finished fourth in the 4 x 400 metres relay in a time of 3:15.4.

Holst-Sørensen competed in the 800 metres at the 1948 Olympics in London. He qualified for the final as no. three in a semifinal in a time of 1:52.4,[4] and finished the final in ninth place in a time of 1:54.0.

Holst-Sørensen won a total of ten Danish championships over 400 and 800 metres, winning both events every year from 1943 to 1947.[5] In 1943 in Stockholm he won the 800 metres in an international match against Sweden in a time of 1:48.9, the fastest time recorded in the world that year.[6] A few days later, coming home to Denmark, he was arrested. As a lieutenant of the Danish army he was interned for a period, because the Danish government had finally broken with the German occupation authorities, while Holst-Sørensen was competing in Stockholm. Holst-Sørensen began his career running for Herning GF, but switched to Københavns Idræts Forening in 1944.[5]

Holst-Sørensen joined the International Olympic committee in 1977 and served as a member until 2002.[2] He served on the IOC's coordination committees for the Winter Olympic Games in Albertville in 1992, Lillehammer in 1994, Nagano in 1998 and Salt Lake City in 2002.[2] He was named as an honorary member of the IOC following his retirement in 2002.[2] Holst-Sørensen also served as the president of the National Olympic Committee from 1981 to 1984.[2]

Military career

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Holst-Sørensen was a graduate of the Royal Danish Army Officers Academy and was a serving Lieutenant in the Royal Danish Army during his athletic career.[2] He was transferred to the Royal Danish Air Force at its foundation in 1950. He eventually rose to the rank of Major General and served as the commander-in-chief of the Air Force from 1970 to 1982 and Denmark's military representative to NATO from 1982 to 1986.[2] He retired from the Air Force in 1987.[2]

Death

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Niels Holst-Sørensen died on 24 October 2023, at the age of 100.[7]

References

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  1. ^ Niels Holst-Sørensen. sports-reference.com
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Mr Niels HOLST-SØRENSEN". olympic.org. Archived from the original on 20 January 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  3. ^ a b "European Championships (Men)". GBRAthletics.com. 2007. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  4. ^ "Athletics at the 1948 London Summer Games: Men's 800 metres Semi-Finals". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b "Niels Holst Sørensen". dafital.dk. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  6. ^ "Index of Who's Who in Running". runtheplanet.com. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  7. ^ "Tidligere dansk IOC-medlem Niels Holst-Sørensen er død". Politiken. 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
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