Glima Demonstration at 1912 Olympic Games
Glima (Icelandic Wrestling) is an Icelandic national style of folk wrestling, and was a demonstration sport at the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games. A demonstration was held at the Olympic stadium at 7.30 on July 7th 1912.
Here is a quote from the Official Report of the Olympic Games of Stockholm 1912, p817-818:
"a display was being given of Icelandic "Glima" - wrestling, a form of athletics that demands skill, elegance and litheness. After a friendly hand-shake, the opponents grasped each other firmly by the "handles" in the leather girdles they wore. Then began a lithe, dance-like wrestling, in the course of which the men were as often being swung in the air as they were on terra firma, and some vigorous bouts were fought before a proper fall could be gained"
Glima Demonstration at the 1912 Olympic Games.from: The Official Report of the Olympic Games of Stockholm 1912
Competition
In addition to the display of glima as described above, there was also a competition held at the Olympic Stadium on July 15. The prize was a cup donated by Icelanders living in Denmark. The following Icelanders took part in the competition: Sigurjón Pjetursson, Hallgrimuå Benidiktsson, Magnús Tomasson, Axel Kristjánsson, Gudmundar Kristinu Gudmundsson and Kári Arngrimsson, Halldór Hanssen acting as judge. The official report states that "The display was one of the most delightful of all the competitions in the Games."
Related Pages
- More about the sport of Glima
- Demonstration Sports at the 1912 Olympic Games
- Full list of all Demonstration Sports
- About sport in Sweden
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