Olaf Wilhelm Petersen (13 December 1841 – 31 July 1909) was a
Norwegian military
The Norwegian Armed Forces ( no, Forsvaret, , The Defence) is the armed forces, military organization responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of five branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Norwegian ...
officer and
sports official.
[
]
Personal life
Petersen was born in Christiania to Peter Munch Petersen and Elisabeth Faye, and married Karen Faye in 1871.[
]
Career
Petersen graduated from the Norwegian Military Academy
The Norwegian Military Academy (), in Oslo, educates officers of the Norwegian Army and serves as the King's Royal Guard. The academy was established in 1750, and is the oldest institution for higher education in Norway.
History
The Commander- ...
in 1861, and studied further at the Norwegian Military College and at ''Centralinstituttet'' in Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
. His assignments included being head of ''Den norske Garde'' in Stockholm from 1895 to 1901, and head of the Norwegian Military Academy from 1901 to 1907. He took actively part in the development of the sport of skiing
Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...
, was a co-founder of Foreningen til Ski-Idrettens Fremme, served as judge at Husebyrennet
Husebyrennet was a ski jumping competition which was held in Ullern, Oslo, Norway. These yearly competitions, held from 1879 to 1891, were a precursor to the Holmenkollen event. Starting in January 1892, this competition relocated to the Holme ...
and Holmenkollen Ski Festival
The Holmenkollen Ski Festival ( no, Holmenkollen skifestival or ) is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic.
History
It takes place in March ...
, and chaired ''Skiforsøkskommisjonen'' from 1895 to 1900.
Awards and decorations
He was decorated Knight, First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 1895, was a Commander of the Order of the Sword
The Royal Order of the Sword (officially: ''Royal Order of the Sword''; Swedish: ''Kungliga Svärdsorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry and military decoration created by King Frederick I of Sweden on February 23, 1748, together with the Or ...
, and a Knight of the Order of Wasa. He died in Hvitsten
Hvitsten is a former town in Akershus county, Norway, located between Drøbak and Son.
It is the smallest town that has ever existed in Norway: In 1951 it had 76 inhabitants, and an area of just 0.07 km2. Due its size it could not be establi ...
in 1909.[
]
Selected works
*
References
1841 births
1909 deaths
Military personnel from Oslo
Norwegian Army personnel
Norwegian Military Academy alumni
Norwegian Military College alumni
Norwegian sports executives and administrators
Commanders of the Order of the Sword
Knights of the Order of Vasa
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