Gustav Hügel

Gustav Hügel
Personal information
Born1871 (1871)
Died6 April 1953(1953-04-06) (aged 81–82)
Vienna, Austria
Figure skating career
Country Austria-Hungary
DisciplineMen's singles
Medal record
Representing Austria-Hungary
Men's Figure skating
World Championships
Gold medal – first place1900 DavosMen's singles
Gold medal – first place1899 DavosMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1898 LondonMen's singles
Gold medal – first place1897 StockholmMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1896 St. PetersburgMen's singles
European Championships
Gold medal – first place1901 ViennaMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1900 BerlinMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1899 DavosMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1895 BudapestMen's singles
Silver medal – second place1894 ViennaMen's singles
German Championships
Gold medal – first place1894 OlomoucMen’s Singles
Silver medal – second place1895 BonnMen’s Singles

Gustav Hügel (1871—6 April 1953) was an Austrian figure skater. He was a three-time (1897 and 1899-1900) World Champion and the 1901 European Champion. He won the German national championships in 1894 because, at that time, Austria and Germany held joint championships.

Career

Hügel was the son of the publisher and editor in chief of the Wiener Vorstadt-Zeitung newspaper.[1] He began ice skating when he was 12 and was trained by Leopold Frey.[1][2] He placed 6th in his first European Championships in 1892, the only time he placed lower than second in a major international competition.[3]

He did not compete in 1893 due to being required to fulfill military service.[1] The next year, 1894, his career took off.[2] That year, he won the German Championships,[4] and he placed second at the 1894 European Championships.[3] The next year, he was defeated by Gilbert Fuchs at the German Championships but placed first ahead of Fuchs at a competition in Davos. He again placed second at the 1895 European Championships.[2]

In 1896, at the first World Championships, he placed second. He went on to win his first World title at the 1897 World Championships. He lost to Henning Grenander at the 1898 World Championships but returned to win two more consecutive titles in 1899 and 1900. He also won two consecutive silver medals at the European Championships in 1899 and 1900, then won the title in 1901.[3]

Hügel was known for his skill in special figures.[3] He is also credited with adding steps for a follower to the Schöller-Schritt, an ice waltz created by Franz Schöller, turning it into the tenstep, the first dance meant specifically for ice skating.[5]

After his competitive career, Hügel worked as a coach and owned a sports complex in Hietzing that acted as tennis courts in the summer and an outdoors ice skating rink in the winter. Skaters he coached included:[6]

Death

Hügel died 6 April 1953.[7] He was buried in Feuerhalle Simmering in Vienna.[8]

Results

Event 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901
World Championships[9]2nd1st2nd1st1st
European Championships6th2nd2nd2nd2nd1st
German Championships1st2nd

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Eislaufen" [Ice skating]. Allgemeine Sport-Zeitung (in German). 21 February 1897. p. 163. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "Eissport" [Ice sport]. Deutsches Volksblatt (in German). 18 March 1897. p. 18. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Hines, James R. (2015). Figure skating in the formative years: singles, pairs, and the expanding role of women. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-09704-1.
  4. ↑ "Deutsche Eiskunstlauf Meisterschaften bis 1963" [German Figure Skating Championships until 1963]. Sport-Record.de (in German). Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  5. ↑ Copley-Graves, Lynn (1992). Figure Skating History: The Evolution of Dance on Ice. Platoro Press. p. 13. ISBN 978-0-9631758-1-6.
  6. ↑ "Hügel, ein Begründer der Winer Eislaufschule" [Hügel, a founder of the Vienna Ice Skating School]. Sport-Telegraf (in German). 1 March 1936. p. 4. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "Weltmeister Hügel" [World Champion Hügel]. Oberösterreichische Nachrichten (in German). 13 April 1953. p. 7. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  8. ↑ "Verstorbenensuche Detail" [Deceased Search Details]. Friedhöfe Wien (in German). Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  9. ↑ Hines, James R. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Figure Skating. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-0-8108-6859-5.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.