Hjalmar Andersen

Hjalmar Andersen of Norway was the first man to win three speed skating gold medals at one Olympic Winter Games. Winning the three long races (1,500 metres, 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres) at the 1952 Games in his native Oslo, he won the 10,000 metres by a substantial margin and the 5,000 metres with an astounding 11 second lead.   

His Olympic speed skating career began inauspiciously as he failed to finish the 10,000 metres at the St.Moritz Games in 1948, the only event in which he competed that year. He retired after the Oslo 1952 Games but returned to competition in 1954 to win his fourth Norwegian title, having earlier won the World, European and Norwegian all-around titles in 1950-52. Andersen competed at the 1956 Olympic Games, finishing 11th in the 5,000 metres and 6th in 10,000 metres, but then retired for good.