Harald Andersson

Harald "Slaktarn" Andersson (2 April 1907 – 18 May 1985) was a Swedish discus thrower. In 1934 he won a European title[1] and held the world record for eight months. The same year he was awarded the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal.[3]

Harald Andersson

Harald Andersson in 1934
Personal information
Born	2 April 1907 Stanford, California, United States
Died	18 May 1985 (aged 78) Nynäshamn, Sweden
Height	191 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Weight	99 kg (218 lb)
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	Discus throw
Club	IFK Falun
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	53.02 m (1935)[1][2]
Medal record Representing  Sweden European Championships 1934 Turin Discus throw

Career

Andersson was Swedish champion in every year from 1932 to 1935 and the world's best discus thrower in 1934 and 1935.[4][3] He broke Paul Jessup's world record of 51.73 m twice in one competition (a dual meet between the Swedish and Norwegian teams in Oslo) on 25 August 1934, throwing first 52.20 m and then 52.42 m;[5] the latter mark was officially ratified by the IAAF.[6] At the European Championships in Turin two weeks later Andersson threw 50.38 m and won by more than three meters from Paul Winter and István Donogán.[7]

Andersson lost his world record in April 1935, when Germany's Willy Schröder threw 53.10 m in Magdeburg;[6] however, he remained the world's top thrower, as Schröder was less consistent at a high level and suffered from health problems over the summer.[5] Andersson won both the Swedish and AAA Championships titles that year,[3] and on October 13 he improved his Swedish record to 53.02 m in Örebro.[5][8] He was a leading favorite for the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, but injured himself before the Games;[3] he attempted to throw in the qualification, but only managed about 38.5 metres and failed to qualify for the final.[9]

References

1. Harald Andersson. sports-reference.com
2. Harald Andersson. trackfield.brinkster.net
3. "Stora Grabbar" (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 12 October 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
4. "Athletics at the 1936 Berlin Summer Games: Men's Discus Throw". Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
5. Jukola, Martti (1935). Huippu-urheilun historia (in Finnish). Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö.
6. Butler, Mark; IAAF Media & Public Relations Department (2013). IAAF Statistics Book Moscow 2013. International Association of Athletics Federations. p. 635.
7. Jalava, Mirko (2014). "European Athletics Championships Zürich 2014: Statistics Handbook" (PDF). European Athletics. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
8. All-Time List As At 31 December 1945, Association of Track and Field Statisticians
9. "Harald Andersson Bio, Stats and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2014.