Eric Heiden
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Eric Arthur Heiden (born June 14, 1958) is an American physician and a former
long track speed skater   Long-track speed skating, usually simply referred to as speed skating, is the Olympic sport, Olympic discipline of speed skating where competitors are timed while crossing a set distance. It is also a sport for leisure. Sports such as ice skat ...
, road cyclist and track cyclist. He won an unprecedented five individual gold medals, and set four Olympic records and one world record at the 1980 Winter Olympic Games. Heiden was the most successful athlete at those Olympic Games, single-handedly winning more gold medals than all nations except for the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
(10) and
East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
(9). He is the most successful Winter Olympian from a single edition of any Winter Olympics. He delivered the Athlete's Oath at those same 1980 Games. His coach was
Dianne Holum Dianne Mary Holum (born May 19, 1951) is a retired American speed skater. In 1966, Holum became the youngest person to compete in the world speed skating championships. Next year she won bronze at the World Allround Championships. At the age of ...
. Heiden is an icon in the speed skating community. His victories are significant, as few speed skaters (and athletes in general) have won competitions in both sprint and long-distance events. Heiden is the only athlete in the history of speed skating to have won all five events in a single Olympic tournament and the only one to have won a gold medal in all events. He is considered by some to be the best overall speed skater (short and long distances) in the sport's history. Heiden ranked No. 46 in ''
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
's
SportsCentury ''SportsCentury'' is an ESPN biography television program that reviews the people and events that defined sports in North America throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Using stock footage, on-camera interviews, and photographs of their athletic l ...
50 Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century'' in 1999, the only speed skater to make the list. In 2000, a Dutch newspaper called him the greatest skater ever.


Early life, education and family

Heiden was born in
Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...
on June 14, 1958. His father, Jack Heiden, was a longtime orthopedic surgeon in Madison. His sister,
Beth Heiden Beth may refer to: Letter and number *Bet (letter), or beth, the second letter of the Semitic abjads (writing systems) *Hebrew word for "house", often used in the name of synagogues and schools (e.g. Beth Israel) Name *Beth (given name) lists p ...
, also became an accomplished cyclist, speed skater and cross-country skier. In their hometown
Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin Shorewood Hills is a village in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. It was established in 1927. The population was 2,169 at the 2020 census. Entirely surrounded by the city of Madison and Lake Mendota, it is part of the Madison Metropolitan ...
(a suburb of Madison), Eric and his sister Beth were the driving forces behind the creation of the Heiden Haus, a small outpost where local children can warm up after skating or playing hockey on the
ice rink An ice rink (or ice skating rink) is a frozen body of water and/or an artificial sheet of ice created using hardened chemicals where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Ice rinks are also used for exhibitions, contests and ice shows. The ...
(complete with underground clay platform). He graduated from
Madison West High School Madison West High School is a comprehensive four-year high school in Madison, Wisconsin, founded in 1930. Its athletics teams compete in the WIAA Big Eight Conference. Madison West serves students from four municipalities: Madison, the town of M ...
in 1976. After starting his undergraduate education at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...
, Heiden transferred to the
University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Insti ...
and then to
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
in
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, earning a
B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...
degree in 1984 and an
M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...
degree in 1991.


Athletic career


Speed skating

Heiden won the
World Junior Speed Skating Championships In 1971, the ISU congress decided to hold a World Junior Speed Skating Championships. After two test-championships (1972 and 1973), where only a boys' competition was held in the 1972 edition, the first official championship was introduced in C ...
in 1977 and 1978. During his short speed skating career, Heiden won three World Allround Championships and four World Sprint Championships. Three times he broke the
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 the 1000 metres, twice in the 3000 metres, and once each in the 1500 metres and 10000 metres. He also broke the points world record in both allround and the sprinting distances. Heiden finished his speed skating career by finishing second behind
Hilbert van der Duim Hilbert van der Duim (born 4 August 1957) is a Dutch former speed skater. A two-time world and European champion, Van der Duim "won often but also fell often", and has become famous for some of the incidents that happened to him during his care ...
at the 1980 World Allround Championships in
Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July). ...
. He stood at the top of the Adelskalender, a ranking system for long-track speed skating, for a record 1,495 days, and he won the
Oscar Mathisen Award Since 1959, the Oscar Mathisen Award (also known as the Oscar Mathisen Memorial Award, the Oscar Mathisen Memorial Trophy, and sometimes the Skating Oscar) is awarded annually for outstanding speed skating performance of the season. The award was in ...
four times in a row from 1977 until 1980. He is the only skater who has won the award four times. He received the 1980
James E. Sullivan Award The AAU James E. Sullivan Award, presented by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), is awarded annually in April to "the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States". Representatives from the AAU created the AAU Sullivan Award with the int ...
as the top amateur athlete in the United States. In 1983, he was inducted into the
United States Olympic Hall of Fame United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
. Heiden was elected to the
Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michi ...
in 1990.


World records

Over the course of Heiden's career he skated 15
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 ...
s:


Cycling

After his speed-skating career Heiden became a professional cyclist.


Track cycling

As a track cyclist Heiden competed at the 1981 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in
Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...
, but was not successful. He finished 19th and last in the men's individual pursuit event.


Road bicycle racing

Heiden became a professional
racing cyclist Cycle sport is Competition, competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing ...
. He was one of the first cross-over athletes, becoming a founding member of the
7-Eleven Cycling Team The 7-Eleven Cycling Team, later the Motorola Cycling Team, was a professional cycling team founded in the U.S. in 1981 by Jim Ochowicz, a former U.S. Olympic cyclist. The team lasted 16 years, under the sponsorship of 7-Eleven through 1990 and t ...
. Together with his former speed skating coach (and ex-bike racer),
Jim Ochowicz Jim Ochowicz (born December 23, 1951) is a former Olympic bicyclist and manager of UCI WorldTeam . He served as president of the USA Cycling Board of Directors from 2002 to 2006.http://www.usacycling.org/news/user/story.php?id=3512 Mark Abramson ...
, he conceived of the idea of a European-style sponsored team for North American riders Heiden won a few American professional races. He finished the 1985 Giro d'Italia and took part in the
1986 Tour de France The 1986 Tour de France was a cycling race held in France, from 4 July to 27 July. It was the 73rd running of the Tour de France. Greg LeMond of won the race, ahead of his teammate Bernard Hinault. It was the first ever victory for a rider outs ...
, although he did not complete the race, crashing on a downhill stretch and suffering a concussion five days from the finish. Heiden is believed to have recorded one of the fastest times at 14:10 (1986 or 1987) on one of the local benchmark climbs in
Woodside, California Woodside is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. Woodside is among the wealthiest communities in the United States, home to many technology billionaires and investment manager ...
: Old La Honda Road. In 1985, Heiden won the first U.S. Professional Cycling Championship, becoming the American road race champion. In 1999, Heiden was inducted into the
United States Bicycling Hall of Fame The United States Bicycling Hall of Fame, located in Davis, California, is a private 501c3 non-profit organization formed to preserve and promote the sport of cycling. The organization was founded in 1986 in Somerville, New Jersey and has inducte ...
.


Medical career

Heiden completed medical school at
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
in 1991, and orthopedic residency training at
University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...
, in 1996, then spent a year at a sports medicine clinic in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
. He returned to California to practice as an
orthopedic surgeon Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
in
Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
. At that time, he also served as
team physician The team physician for a sports team is the physician who is in charge of coordinating the medical staff and medical services for a sports team. They are also subject to activities involving team building The goal of a team physician is to improve p ...
for the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's
Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...
and the
Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mona ...
of the WNBA. In 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 he was team physician for the U.S. Olympic speed skating team. He opened a sports medicine-based practice at The Orthopedic Specialty Hospital (TOSH) in
Murray, Utah Murray () is a city situated on the Wasatch Front in the core of Salt Lake Valley in the U.S. state of Utah. Named for territorial governor Eli Murray, it is the state's fourteenth largest city. According to the 2020 census, Murray had a populat ...
and expanded Heiden Orthopaedics with an additional office in
Park City, Utah Park City is a city in Utah, United States. The vast majority is in Summit County, and it extends into Wasatch County. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City' ...
. In 2008, Heiden and Massimo Testa published ''Faster, Better, Stronger'', a book about exercise science and exercise programs. In 2009, Heiden was one of the team of doctors assisting U.S. speed skater J.R. Celski as the latter recovered from a very bad speed skating crash during the U.S. Olympic trials. Despite cutting himself to the bone and requiring 60 stitches, Celski was able to recover in time for the
2010 Winter Olympics )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closing = February 28, 2010 , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Catriona Le May DoanNancy GreeneWayne Gretz ...
in Vancouver, where he won the bronze medal in both men's 1500 m and 5000 m relay.


Personal life

Heiden met fellow medical student Karen Drews while the two were studying at Stanford, and they married in 1995. Karen is a hand surgeon. They have a daughter, Zoe, born in 2001. Heiden was offered many sponsorship opportunities after his record-setting performance in the 1980 Winter Olympics, but turned down most of them, saying he had enough money, and preferred the anonymity. A number of American former gold medal winners, including Heiden, were asked to participate in the ceremonies for the
2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 ( arp, Niico'ooowu' 2002; Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; nv, Sooléí 2002; Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), was an internation ...
held in
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
,
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, but Heiden declined after he was passed over for the honor of lighting the
Olympic torch The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olym ...
. The 1980 U.S. Hockey Team, which won the gold medal at the 1980 games, was given the honor instead. Said Heiden "I was probably just too stubborn. I figured if they don’t appreciate what I did as a skater, if they don’t appreciate now what I am doing as a human being, I'd just as soon hang out with my buddies and watch it. I did not mean to slight the Olympic hockey team in any way."


See also

*
List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games This is a list of athletes who have won multiple gold medals at a single Olympic Games. List of most gold medals won at a single Olympic Games This is a list of most gold medals won in a single Olympic Games. Medals won in the 1906 Intercalated Ga ...
*
List of Olympic medalist families List of Olympic medalists families is a list of people grouped by family who are olympic medalists. Summer Olympics : Winter Olympics : Summer and Winter Olympics See also * List of sport awards * List of multiple Olympic gold medalists ...


References


Further reading

* Wangrin, Mark (1999). "Eric Heiden: True Gold". In ''ESPN SportsCentury''. New York: Hyperion-ESPN Books. pp. 252–3.


External links

*
Eric Heiden
at SpeedSkatingStats.com
PB's and link Results International Championships Eric Heiden
at Speedskatingbase.eu * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Heiden, Eric 1958 births Living people American male speed skaters American male cyclists American cycling road race champions American orthopedic surgeons American sports physicians Olympic gold medalists for the United States in speed skating Speed skaters at the 1976 Winter Olympics Speed skaters at the 1980 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics World record setters in speed skating James E. Sullivan Award recipients Sportspeople from Madison, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Stanford University alumni Stanford University School of Medicine alumni Olympic Games broadcasters World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists World Sprint Speed Skating Championships medalists Oath takers at the Olympic Games Madison West High School alumni Cyclists from Wisconsin