Before taking up ice hockey in 1921, Karl Abrahamsson, nicknamed Calle Aber, was an accomplished track & field athlete and bandy player. As a track & field athlete, Abrahamsson won 28 district championships during 1910s and as a bandy player, was a runner-up at the Swedish championships with AIK in 1915 and 1917. In 1921, Abrahamsson joined Södertälje SK and was the key participant in building up Södertälje’s bandy section in the 1920s. With Södertälje, Abrahamsson also took up ice hockey and won Swedish titles with them in 1925 and 1931. Abrahamsson was selected to the Swedish national ice hockey team in 1926 and played at the 1928 Olympic Winter Games, 1931 World Championships and 1932 European Championships. He won an Olympic silver in 1928, which also doubled as World Championships silver and European Championships gold that year, and the 1932 European title, the last time the European Championships were held separately from Olympic and World Championships tournament, because only two European teams traveled to America, to participate at the Olympics. He was also awarded the Stora Grabbars Märke (Big Boys’ Badge) #9 in ice hockey, a Swedish sports honorary award created in 1928 by Bo Ekelund. Abrahamsson finished his playing career in 1935 and later worked as an ice hockey coach with Södertälje. He was also vice-chairman of the Swedish Ice Hockey Association from 1926-39, was chairman of Södertälje SK from 1927-36, and was the Swedish manager at the 1935 and 1937 World Championships. Abrahamsson married Swedish writer Aurora Nilsson in 1930 and his younger brother Erik Abrahamsson was an accomplished track & field athlete and ice hockey player, who won an Olympic long jump bronze in 1920.
Sweden