Karl Schäfer

Karl Schäfer
File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-13104, Sonja Henie und Karl Schäfer.jpg Karl Schäfer with Sonja Henie.
Personal information
Full name	Karl Schäfer
Country represented	Austria
Born	(1909-05-17)17 May 1909 Vienna
Died	Vienna
Medal record Olympic medal record Representing Austria Men's Figure skating Olympic Games 1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen Men's singles 1932 Lake Placid Men's singles World Championships 1936 Paris Men's singles 1935 Budapest Men's singles 1934 Stockholm Men's singles 1933 Zürich Men's singles 1932 Montreal Men's singles 1931 Berlin Men's singles 1930 New York Men's singles 1929 London Men's singles 1928 Berlin Men's singles 1927 Davos Men's singles European Championships 1936 Berlin Men's singles 1935 St. Moritz Men's singles 1934 Prague Men's singles 1933 London Men's singles 1932 Paris Men's singles 1931 St. Moritz Men's singles 1930 Vienna Men's singles 1929 Davos Men's singles 1928 Troppau Men's singles 1927 Vienna Men's singles

Karl Schäfer (17 May 1909, in Vienna – 23 April 1976, in Vienna) was an Austrian figure skater and swimmer. In figure skating, he became a two-time Olympic champion at the 1932 Winter Olympics and the 1936 Winter Olympics. He was also a seven-time World champion (1930–1936) and eight-time European champion (1929–1930). As a swimmer, he competed at the 1928 Summer Olympics in the 200 metre breakstroke.

Early life and skating career

Karl Schäfer was born not far from the artificial ice rink of Eduard Engelmann Jr. in Vienna-Hernals. Figure skating coach Rudolf Kutzer first recognized Schäfer's talent when he was 11 years old.

Schäfer won ten consecutive medals at the World Championships and European Championships, including seven and eight consecutive gold medals respectively, an all-time high for consecutive titles in both competitions (Sweden's Ulrich Salchow holds the record for all-time non-consecutive titles, ten World and nine European titles). He competed at the 1928 Winter Olympics and placed 4th. He won back-to-back Olympic titles in men's singles at the 1932 Winter Olympics and the 1936 Winter Olympics.

Schäfer retired from competitive skating in 1936. He moved for a couple of years to the United States, where he worked as a coach. In 1938, he opened a sport store in Vienna. In 1940, he and Herta Wächter (also a figure skating coach) founded the "Karl-Schäfer-Eisrevue" (Karl Schäfer Ice Revue). In 1943, Schäfer became an actor and was the star of the movie "Der weiße Traum" (The White Dream), which was produced on Engelmann's ice rink in Vienna-Hernals.

After World War II, Schäfer participated in rebuilding the Engelmann's ice rink, and from 1946 on he coached young skaters there. He moved again to the U.S. in 1956 and worked there as a figure skating coach until 1962. In 1962, he returned as a coach to Vienna-Hernals and lived and worked there until he died.

The Karl Schäfer Memorial was a figure skating competition named after him that was held in Vienna from 1974 to 2008.

Swimming career

Schäfer was the Austrian breaststroke champion several times. He competed in the 1928 Summer Olympics and was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 200 metre breaststroke event.

Personal life

Schäfer played the violin very well. He married Christine Engelmann, the youngest daughter of Eduard Engelmann Jr. He was the brother-in-law of Helene Engelmann.

Results

Figure skating

Event	1927	1928	1929	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936
Winter Olympic Games		4th				1st				1st
World Championships	3rd	2nd	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st
European Championships	3rd	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st
Austrian Championships	2nd	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st		1st

References

• ISU Official Results: Olympic Games: Men's Singles PDF
• ISU Official Results: World Figure Skating Championships: Men's Singles PDF
• ISU Official Results: European Figure Skating Championships: Men's Singles PDF