Figure skating at the 1920 Summer Olympics — 1920 edition of the figure skating competitions during the Olympic Games
The 1920 Summer Olympics figure skating events were the first to include Olympic medals in individual winter disciplines, held four months before the rest of the Games.
Key Facts
- Number of events contested
- 3
- Venue
- Ice Palace of Antwerp
- Date held
- April 1920, four months before main Games
- Oldest individual winter medalist
- Martin Stixrud, age 44
- First North American Olympic medalist
- Theresa Weld (ladies' bronze)
- Gillis Grafström gold medals
- First of three consecutive Olympic golds
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Figure skating had been part of the 1908 London Olympics, establishing a precedent for including winter sports within the Summer Games. For 1920, the International Olympic Committee again incorporated figure skating, scheduling it in April at Antwerp's Ice Palace to take advantage of available ice facilities before warmer weather made conditions unsuitable.
Three figure skating events — men's singles, ladies' singles, and pairs — were contested at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp in April 1920. Gillis Grafström of Sweden won men's gold; Magda Julin of Sweden won women's gold despite receiving no first-place votes; and notable achievements included Martin Stixrud winning bronze at age 44 and Theresa Weld becoming the first North American Olympic figure skating medalist.
The 1920 figure skating competition highlighted the growing need for a dedicated winter sporting event, contributing to the establishment of the first Winter Olympics in Chamonix in 1924. Several individual records set in Antwerp — including Stixrud's age record — remain part of Olympic history, and Gillis Grafström went on to win gold at the next two Winter Olympics as well.
Result
at Ice Palace of Antwerp