10,000 metres, Men

After his two gold medals in the 5,000 and 1,500 m, Hjalmar Andersen was expected to complete the “trilogy” in the 10,000 m. Even without his two Olympic titles, Andersen would have been the top favorite at Bislett. Since placing second behind Reidar Liaklev at the 1950 European Championships, Andersen had not lost a single 10,000 m. In 1949, he had become the first man to beat 17 minutes, and in 1952 had broken the world record two more times. After lowering the mark by 6 seconds in Gjøvik, Andersen improved his own time by a staggering 20 seconds to 16.32,6, just a week before the Olympics. Kees Broekman and Pentti Lammio were second and third in that race, with the former also beating 17 minutes.

As during the 5,000 m, weather conditions were excellent, a few degrees below zero, no wind and a little sun. Andersen, again drawn early in the programme, set out for another steady race, although he could not copy his recent performance. After lapping his Japanese opponent, Andersen finished in 16.45,8, the second fastest 10,000 m ever. With the gold medal claimed by the Norwegian, the remaining skaters competed for the silver and bronze.

First up was Anton Huiskes, fourth in the 5,000 m. The Dutchman again started at a promising pace, but could not hold it to the end, finishing in 17.25,5. He was followed by Sverre Haugli, who had been one place ahead of Huiskes in the 5,000 two days earlier. This time, the tables were turned, and Haugli finished behind Huiskes. But neither of them would medal. The first to surpass them was Lammio. The Finn took five seconds off Huiskes’s time, and went into silver medal position.

After ice preparation, Kees Broekman, a prospective silver medalist, faced Carl-Erik Asplund of Sweden. The latter had placed sixth in the 5,000 and had a good track record in the 10,000 m, placing second in the event at the 1951 Europeans. Both skaters started fast and kept close to Andersen’s splits. But both eventually cracked, first Asplund, then Broekman. Broekman was just five seconds behind “Hjallis” at the halfway point, but lost over a second per lap in the second part, finishing with a 25-second gap to Andersen. Asplund managed to maintain a good pace as well, and completed his race 6 seconds behind the Dutchman, fast enough to beat Lammio for the bronze.