Louis Balsan (22 October 1911 – 22 May 1982) was a French

bobsled Bobsleigh or bobsled is a team winter sport that involves making timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Feder ...

der who competed in the 1930s. He later became a writer in the 1950s, discussing his involvement in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangibl ...

and the history of

mountain climbing Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, a ...

in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

. He was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Bobsleigh career

Competing in two

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 ...

, Balsan earned his best finish of ninth in the four-man event at

Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; Bavarian: ''Garmasch-Partakurch''), nicknamed Ga-Pa, is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the O ...

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

. At the 1932 Winter Olympics he and Daniel Armand-Delille finished eleventh in the two-man event

Other activities

Balsan was later arrested by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

in 1942 during

for participating in resistance activities. He was taken to Mauthausen and then Loibl Pass, until the 8th Army (UK) liberated the area in 1945. He wrote a testimony of his life in concentration camps in Le Ver Luisant. Other books written by fellow prisoners include Karawanken (memoirs of Gaston Charlet) and The Tunnel (a novel based on the author's experiences). the history of mountain climbing in the Pyrennes. Balsan died in 1982.

References

External links

1932 bobsleigh two-man results1951 article written by Balsan

1911 births 1982 deaths Sportspeople from Paris Olympic bobsledders of France French male bobsledders Bobsledders at the 1932 Winter Olympics Bobsledders at the 1936 Winter Olympics French mountain climbers French Resistance members Mauthausen concentration camp survivors 20th-century French memoirists 20th-century French male writers French male non-fiction writers {{France-bobsleigh-bio-stub