- Karl Schäfer
Karl Schäfer (
May 17 ,1909 inVienna –April 23 ,1976 in Vienna) was anAustria n figure skater and swimmer. In figure skating, he was the 1930-1936 World Champion and the 1929-1936 European Champion. He won the gold medals at the 1932 Winter Olympics and the 1936 Winter Olympics. As a swimmer, he competed in thebreaststroke and competed at the1928 Summer Olympics in that event.Biography
Karl Schäfer was born not far from the artificial ice rink of
Eduard Engelmann Jr. in Vienna-Hernals. When he was 11 years old, the figure skating coach Rudolf Kutzer first recognized his talent. In 1923 he participated in an ice show in Hernals as "Rosenkavalier".As a figure skater, he won 10 consecutive medals at the
World Figure Skating Championships and theEuropean Figure Skating Championships . He competed at the1928 Winter Olympics and placed 4th. He won back to back Olympic titles in men's singles at the1932 Winter Olympics and the1936 Winter Olympics .Schäfer was talented in other ways as well. He played the violin very well, and was also Austrian
breaststroke champion several times. He competed in the1928 Summer Olympics and was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 200 metre breaststroke event.He retired from competitive skating in 1936. He moved for a couple of years to the United States and worked there as a coach. In 1938 he opened a sport store in Vienna. In 1940 he and Herta Wächter (also a figure skating coach) founded the "Karl-Schäfer-Eisrevue" (Karl Schäfer Ice Revue).
In 1943 he became an actor and was the star of the movie "Der weiße Traum" (The White Dream), which was produced on Engelmann's ice rink in Vienna-Hernals.
After the
World War II Schäfer participated in rebuilding the Engelmann's ice rink, and from 1946 on he coached young skaters there.Between 1956 and 1962 he moved again to the U.S. to work as a figure skating coach. From 1962 he returned as a coach to Vienna-Hernals and lived and worked there until he died.
He was married to Christine Engelmann, the youngest daughter of Eduard Engelmann Jr. He was the brother-in-law of
Helene Engelmann .The
Karl Schäfer Memorial is a figure skating competition named after him that is held annually in Vienna.Competitive highlights
Figure skating
References
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*Persondata
NAME=Schäfer, Karl
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Schafer, Karl
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Austrian figure skater
DATE OF BIRTH=May 17 ,1909
PLACE OF BIRTH=Vienna
DATE OF DEATH=April 23 ,1976
PLACE OF DEATH=Vienna
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