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Tomas GustafsonTomas Gustafson (born 28 december 1959 - Katrineholm, Sweden) was a Swedish speedskater, considered to be the "Distance Skating King of the 1980s".
Grenoble, France, 1979, he gained the World Junior Championship title, which suggested that a glorious future could be ahead of him. One year later at the European Championship of seniors he placed himself 4th, remarkable for a 20 year old. One month later he participated in the 1980 winter olympics at Lake Placid, with a 7th place at the 1500 m as his best performance. In the same month he regained his junior World title with ease. In 1982 he became allround European Champion in Oslo, where he set the 10000 m world record. This is the last outdoor World record for men on a lowland track. Because of this outstanding performance he got awarded the Oscar Mathisen-award, an award for the best skating performance in the past season. One year later, at the same norwegian ice, he found himself at the stage of podium of the World Championships Speed Skating, finishing second behind Rolf Falk-Larssen. One year later, his focus wasn't at the allround championships, but at the 1984 winter olympics at Sarajevo. He won olympic gold at the 5000 m, leaving the soviet Igor Malkov two hundreds of a second behind. In the 10000 m he found himself again in a close finish with Malkov, this time losing the battle by 5 hundreds of a second. After these olympics Gustafson struggled through knee surgery, meningitis and the death of his father. But in the olympic year 1988 he regained his form and strength, right when it mattered most. In January he announced his olympic ambitions by winning the allround European Championships at the Hague, winning all four distances, an achievement no one else made in post-war speedskating. With his nemesis Malkov retired, Gustafson knew he had to focus on outpacing long-distance skaters like dutchmen Leo Visser and Gerard Kemkers and the austrian Michael Hadschieff. Gustafson managed to do so first in the 5000 m, in an unbelievable way. He trailed Leo Visser's pace by eight hundredths of a second with only 400m to go. However he skated an exceptional final lap to win by a third of a second. Four days later he achieved olympic gold again at the 10000 m setting an impressive world record time: 13.48,20. The record lasted for 3 years, when it was broken by Johann Olav Koss. Logically, Gustafson received the Oscar Mathisen-award again for his performances in 1988. After the 1988 winter olympics, Gustafson remained a speedskater for four more years. The only notable achievement he made after Calgary was finishing second behind Bart Veldkamp in the 1990 allround European Championship. At the 1992 Winter Olympics at Albertville he only participated in the 5000 m, finishing 13th. This was Gustafsons last international race. Except for the Allround World Championship, Tomas Gustafson achieved everything he ever aimed for in speedskating. Three olympic gold medals, one olympic silver medal, setting the 10000 m world record twice. At the 1998 winter olympics, his wife, Elisabet Gustafson, won a bronze medal in curling.
References *Official website of the Olympic Movement
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