Ulrich Salchow facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ulrich Salchow
Ulrich Salchow at the 1908 Olympics
Personal information
Country represented	Sweden
Born	(1877-08-07)7 August 1877 Copenhagen, Denmark
Died	19 April 1949(1949-04-19) (aged 71) Stockholm, Sweden

Karl Emil Julius Ulrich Salchow (born August 7, 1877 – died April 19, 1949) was a famous figure skater. He was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, but competed for Sweden. He was one of the best figure skaters in the world during the early 1900s.

A Champion on Ice

Ulrich Salchow was incredibly successful in figure skating. He won the World Figure Skating Championships ten times! He won from 1901 to 1905, and then again from 1907 to 1911. This amazing record is still shared today with two other legendary skaters: Sonja Henie and Irina Rodnina.

He didn't compete in the 1906 World Championships. This was because he was worried he might not get a fair score against a German skater named Gilbert Fuchs.

Olympic Gold Medalist

Figure skating became an Olympic sport for the first time at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. Ulrich Salchow easily won the gold medal there. This made him one of the oldest figure skating Olympic champions at the time.

European Success

Besides his World and Olympic titles, Salchow also won the European Figure Skating Championships a record nine times. He also earned three silver medals at the World Championships.

The Famous Salchow Jump

Ulrich Salchow is most famous for inventing a special jump. In 1909, he was the first person to successfully land this jump in a competition.

How the Salchow Jump Works

To do a Salchow jump, a skater takes off from the back inside edge of one skate. They then spin in the air and land on the back outside edge of their other skate. This jump is still a basic move in figure skating today, and it's named the Salchow jump in his honor!

Life After Skating

After he stopped competing, Ulrich Salchow continued to be very involved in the sport. He became the president of the International Skating Union (ISU) from 1925 to 1937. The ISU is the main organization that governs figure skating and speed skating worldwide.

He was also the chairman of AIK in Stockholm from 1928 to 1939. AIK is a very important sports club in Sweden, known for football, ice hockey, and other sports.

Ulrich Salchow was married to Dr. Anne-Elisabeth Salchow, who was a dentist. He passed away in Stockholm when he was 71 years old and was buried at Norra begravningsplatsen.

Results

This table shows Ulrich Salchow's results in major figure skating competitions throughout his career.

See also

In Spanish: Ulrich Salchow para niños