Hallgrímur Benediktsson

Hallgrímur Benediktsson’s most famous sporting victory came in 1907, when he defeated Jóhannes Jósefsson at the Royal Wrestling Championship at Þingvellir. He took part in the first Icelandic national sports meet, in June 1911, where he won the prize for the best style. At the glíma exhibition at the 1912 Olympic Games, Benediktsson won all five of his bouts and took the title. His grandfather Jón Þorsteinsson was already one of Iceland’s most famous wrestlers.

Benediktsson attended the Reykjavík Commercial School from 1905–06 but initially worked as a postman. From 1907 he was a merchant at the Edinburgh Store before founding his own wholesale business, H. Benediktsson & Co, in 1911. The company became a representative of the American Vacuum Oil Company, a predecessor of ExxonMobil. The quickly rising demand for oil in those days and his American trading connections quickly made him a wealthy man. In 1926, he entered into an agreement with Royal Dutch Shell to establish a new company called Skeljungur for the import of petrol, which also built a new port. Benediktsson’s company H. Benediktsson & Co was Skeljungur’s largest shareholder for decades. Car import was added to the list of activities through a new subsidiary in 1940. His businesses also included the Síríus Chocolate Factory, which was run by the family until 2021.

Benediktsson acted as chairman of the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce from 1934–49. He was also a member of the Reykjavík City Council and its president from 1952-54 as well as a member of parliament for the Independence Party (1945-49). Benediktsson was married to Áslaug Geirsdóttir Zoega, a school principal. They had three children, two sons and one daughter. Another son died in infancy. Their youngest son Geir later became prime minister (1974-78) and chairman of the Independence Party (1973-83), mayor of Reykjavík (1959-72) and governor of the Central Bank (1986-90). The two other children played important roles in the management of the family business.