Gunnar Mikael Höckert (12 February 1910 – 11 February 1940) was a
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
runner, winner of the 5000 m race at the
1936 Summer Olympics.
Biography
Born in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...
to a wealthy family, Gunnar Höckert had only one great season, in 1936. The 5000 m final at the
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
Olympics started in a good pace. The tempo was dictated by
American Donald Lash, but he was overtaken by three Finns after 2,000 m. Soon the race turned into a battle between Höckert and defending Olympic Champion and world record holder
Lauri Lehtinen. In the last lap Höckert overran Lehtinen to win in a world's season best time of 14:22.2. In this same race Gunnar's teammate
Henry Jonsson
John Henry Jonsson (12 May 1912 – 9 March 2001) was a Swedish runner who won a bronze medal over 5000 m at the 1936 Summer Olympics. He finished second at the 1938 European Championships. In 1940 he changed his name to Henry Kälarne, and wa ...
got third place over
Kohei Murakoso, the Japanese runner who was leading the race at the beginning.
[
Later on that season, on 16 September in Stockholm, Höckert ran a new ]world record
A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...
in 3,000 m (8:14.8). A week later, on the same track, Höckert ran a new world record in 2 miles (8:57.4) and another week later, he equalled the Jules Ladoumegue
Jules is the French form of the Latin "Julius" (e.g. Jules César, the French name for Julius Caesar). It is the given name of:
People with the name
* Jules Aarons (1921–2008), American space physicist and photographer
*Jules Abadie (1876–19 ...
's 2,000 m world record of 5:21.8 in Malmö
Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...
.[
The rest of Höckert's athletics career was hampered by rheumatism, and he never again achieved the times he had run in 1936. He went to the ]Winter War
The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
as a volunteer
Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...
, progressing to 2nd lieutenant. He was killed during the Winter War on the Karelian Isthmus
The Karelian Isthmus (russian: Карельский перешеек, Karelsky peresheyek; fi, Karjalankannas; sv, Karelska näset) is the approximately stretch of land, situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern ...
, just one day before his thirtieth birthday.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hockert, Gunnar
1910 births
1940 deaths
Burials at Hietaniemi Cemetery
Athletes from Helsinki
People from Uusimaa Province (Grand Duchy of Finland)
Swedish-speaking Finns
Finnish male middle-distance runners
Finnish male long-distance runners
Finnish male steeplechase runners
Olympic athletes of Finland
Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics
Olympic gold medalists for Finland
World record setters in athletics (track and field)
Finnish military personnel killed in World War II
Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics
Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field)