Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson

Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson (25 May 1924 – 9 July 2018) was an Icelandic multi-sport athlete who competed in sprinting in the 1948 Summer Olympics.[1][2][3] He also won national championships in both handball and basketball with Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur.

Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson
Personal information
Born25 May 1924 (1924-05-25)
Hnífsdalur, Kingdom of Iceland
Died9 July 2018(2018-07-09) (aged 94)
Height180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight71 kg (157 lb)
SpouseTheodóra Steffensen
Sport
SportTrack and field, basketball, handball
ClubÍþróttafélag Reykjavíkur

Early life edit

Finnbjörn was born in Hnífsdalur, Westfjords. At a young age he moved to Ísafjörður an later to Reykjavík with his parents.[4]

Sports career edit

Finnbjörn was best known for his achievements in track and field, especially in sprinting where won several national and nordic championships.[5][6] He was the flag bearer for Iceland at the 1948 Summer Olympics where he competed in sprinting.[7] He also competed in handball and basketball. He won the Icelandic national championship in handball in 1946 with Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur after scoring the winning goal in ÍR's 20–19 victory against Haukar.[8] In 1954, Finnbjörn won the national championship in basketball with ÍR's basketball team.[9]

Death edit

Finnbjörn died on 9 July 2018 at the age of 94.[7]

References edit

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  2. ^ Örn Eiðsson (25 May 1994). "Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  3. ^ ""Finnbjörn var frábær"". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 10 March 2007. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  4. ^ "Maggi Bald Þuru kemur "heim" eftir 53 ár". Bæjarins besta (in Icelandic). 29 July 1998. pp. 6–7. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Tímarit.is. 
  5. ^ Örn Eiðsson (25 May 1994). "Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  6. ^ Ómar Ragnarsson (1 February 2008). "Gasellu drengirnir". Ský (in Icelandic). pp. 50–55. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Tímarit.is. 
  7. ^ a b "Andlát: Finnbjörn Þorvaldsson". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 12 July 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  8. ^ "Skoppaði tvisvar og lenti í markinu". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). 6 May 2003. p. 19. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Tímarit.is. 
  9. ^ Sigmundur Ó. Steinarsson (10 March 2007). "Fimm prinsar á ferð á gullárum ÍR". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 18 November 2017.