Kenneth "Ken" Charles Henry (January 7, 1929 – March 1, 2009) was a

speed skater Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating. ...

from the

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Biography

Henry won the gold medal in the 500 m at the 1952 Winter Olympics held in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, in front of 28,000 people at

Bislett Stadium Bislett Stadium ( no, Bislett stadion) is a sports stadium in Oslo, Norway. Bislett is Norway's most well known sports arena internationally, with 15 speed skating world records and more than 50 track and field world records having been set here ...

in a time of 43.2 seconds. Two weeks later, he won the same title in the annual World Meet at

Hamar Hamar is a town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the traditional region of Hedmarken. The town is located on the shores of Mjøsa, Norway's largest lake ...

, Norway. His 1952 Olympic gold medal time was one tenth of one second short of the record time set in 1948 by

Finn Helgesen Finn Helgesen (25 April 1919 – 3 September 2011) was a speed skater from Norway. Career Competing in the 500 m he won the national title in 1947 and 1949 and an Olympic gold medal in 1948. In 1948 he set a new Olympic record at 43.1 seconds ...

of Norway. Henry competed in three Olympics. In 1948, he came fifth in the 500 metre event at the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

of St. Moritz, Switzerland. The 1956 Winter Olympics were the third for the American in the 500 m event in Cortina d'Ampezzo,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. In between, Henry finished fourth overall in both the 1949 and 1950 World Allround Championships. Henry has always lived in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

area. He began skating when he was nine years old near Edison Park in Chicago. He later starred at

Taft High School Taft School or Taft High School may refer to: * Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut, founded by Horace Dutton Taft, William Howard Taft's brother Schools named after William Howard Taft: * William Howard Taft High School (Los Angeles) * Willi ...

. He won the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

''-sponsored Silver Skates titles in 1946 and 1947, as well as the Intermediate National and North American Outdoor Championships when he was seventeen years of age. At

Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...

, he majored in physical education, and played on the golf team. He graduated in 1955. Henry became the golf club professional at Glen Flora Country Club in

Waukegan, Illinois ''(Fortress or Trading Post)'' , image_flag = , image_seal = , blank_emblem_size = 150 , blank_emblem_type = Logo , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivisi ...

in 1955, a position he held until 1994. Henry lived in

Lake Bluff, Illinois Lake Bluff is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 5,616. History The first settler family to claim land within the area now part of Lake Bluff arrived in 1836. They claimed 100 acres of ...

for most of his adult life. At the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, California, Henry was chosen to light the final torch at the opening ceremony. These were the first televised Olympics, and the outdoor ceremony was produced by Walt Disney. In

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...

, Switzerland, where the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

has its headquarters, there is an exhibit displaying all the torches from each of the Olympic opening ceremonies. Henry is listed as the final torch bearer, along with some background information on the travel of the 1960 torch itself. Henry served as a coach on the American men's and women's Olympic speed skating team in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 2001, Henry was inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.

References

Ken Henry at SkateResults.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry, Ken 1929 births 2009 deaths American male speed skaters Speed skaters at the 1948 Winter Olympics Speed skaters at the 1952 Winter Olympics Speed skaters at the 1956 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1952 Winter Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in speed skating Northern Illinois University alumni Speed skaters from Chicago Olympic cauldron lighters