The 5000 metres
speed skating
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 skatin ...
event was part of the
speed skating at the 1956 Winter Olympics
At the 1956 Winter Olympics, four speed skating events were contested. This was the last edition in which only men participated. The competitions were held from Saturday, 28 January, to Tuesday, 31 January 1956.
Medal summary
Participating n ...
programme. The competition was held on naturally frozen ice on the
Lake Misurina
Lake Misurina ( it, Lago di Misurina; Cadorino dialect: ''Lago de Meśorìna'') is the largest natural lake of the Cadore and it is 1,754 m above sea level, near Auronzo di Cadore (Belluno). The lake's perimeter is 2.6 km long, whi ...
. It was held on Sunday, 29 January 1956, started at 11
a.m. and ended at 3
p.m. Forty-six speed skaters from 17 nations competed.
Medalists
Records
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in minutes) prior to the 1956 Winter Olympics.
''(*)'' The record was set in a high altitude venue (more than 1000 metres above sea level) and on naturally frozen ice.
''(**)'' The record was set on naturally frozen ice.
At first
Helmut Kuhnert who skated in the first pair set a new Olympic record with 8:04.3 minutes. In the third pair
Wim de Graaff bettered the Olympic record with 8:00.2 minutes. Finally
Boris Shilkov
Boris Arsenyevich Shilkov (russian: Борис Арсеньевич Шилков; 28 June 1927 – 29 June 2015) was a speed skater.
Skating career
Competing for the Soviet Union, Shilkov lived in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), where ...
set a new Olympic record with 7:48.7 minutes on the way to win the fourth heat and the gold medal.
Results
See also
*
1956 Winter Olympics
References
External links
Official Olympic Report*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Speed Skating At The 1956 Winter Olympics - Men's 5000 Metres
Speed skating at the 1956 Winter Olympics