Kongepokalen (officially: Hans Majestet Kongens Pokal) is a Norwegian trophy awarded during Norwegian championships in a number of sports. In addition to Norwegian championships, it is also awarded in the World Cup-race in Nordic combined in Holmenkollen. The first known King's Cup awarded to a sport within the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports (NIF) was set up by King Oscar II for Husebyrennet in 1879. The trophies are paid for jointly by the Royal Court and NIF.
King's trophies are awarded to most sports organized in NIF. The trophy is set up for the woman and man who deliver the supposed best result during a senior Norwegian Championship. [1] In some sports the King's Cup is awarded to the best result/athlete regardless of exercise (e.g. athletics and swimming), while in other sports the King's Cup is set up in a single exercise. In order for the King's Cup to be awarded, there must be at least 15 athletes competing for it. In team sports, at least 8 teams must participate in the national championship for the King's Cup to be awarded.
Most federations within the Norwegian Sports Confederation are awarded two royal trophies each year. Some federations that administer several different sports are awarded several royal trophies, such as The Norwegian Martial Arts Association, the Norwegian Climbing Association and the Norwegian Archery Association. The Norwegian Ski Federation awards at least five royal trophies each year to Norwegian champions in alpine, cross-country, ski jumping, Nordic combined, freestyle and telemarking, in addition to the winner of the world cup race in Nordic combined in Holmenkollen.
King's trophies are also awarded in activities that are not organized within NIF, including the Norwegian Trotting Association and the National Rifle Association of Norway, where the "shooting king" receives the trophy. King's trophies are also awarded outside of traditional sports, such as chess, folk music, brass bands and tracking dogs. [2]
During Husebyrennet in 1879, the King set up a royal mug for his best man on skis. This was won by Jon Hauge. Furthermore, six smaller mugs were also set up, which were distributed to other classes. King Oscar II himself was present. Until 1905, he set up a total of sixty royal trophies, mainly in skiing. In 1901, the King's Cup in speed skating was awarded, and in 1902, athletics and association football received their first King's Cups.
In tennis, royal trophies were awarded to both men and women from 1910. This was the first time a royal trophy was awarded to a woman. Later, royal trophies were awarded to women in figure skating from 1915, in swimming from 1916, and in handball from 1939. Since 1979, most federations have awarded two royal trophies each year, to the best man and best woman in the Norwegian championships, respectively. In 1979, for the first time, royal trophies were awarded to both genders in badminton, basketball, table tennis, bowling, archery, fencing, football, golf, racewalking, dog sledding, judo, rowing and cycling.
The oldest registered royal trophy was made by goldsmith J. Tostrup in 1878, and is said to have been given to a trotting convention in Christiania. [3]
From 1906 King Haakon VII set up royal trophies, from 1957 King Olav V and from 1991 King Harald V.
Other countries' kings also set up royal trophies for sporting achievements, including Spain (Copa del Rey in football since 1902), and Japan (Emperor's Cup, in football since 1921 and in sumo wrestling since 1925.) [4]
The King's Cup's appearance has varied over the years, and several different goldsmiths have been used as manufacturer, including Tostrup, N.M. Thune and Hammer in Bergen. Around 1920, A. Frisch took over most of the production of the King's Cups and later "Th. Marthinsens Sølvvarefabrikk".
During King Haakon VII's reign, a number of different royal trophies were made, but the royal trophy was redesigned after the change of throne in 1957, when King Olav V switched to the royal trophy we know today. It was "Th. Marthinsen Sølvvarefabrikk" in Tønsberg who made it, and the trophy had a more sober design than those awarded under King Haakon VII. King Harald V retained the same design and manufacturer as King Olav after the change of throne in 1991.
The trophy is 21 cm high and weighs about 330 grams. It is almost cylindrical with a widespread at the top of the mouth and a slightly wider but narrow foot. Near the foot goes a ribbon, bounded by two rings. On the tape it is written "H.M. The King's Prize". The ribbon and rings are soldered to the trophy. On the shiny cylinder is the king's monogram with the crown soldered on.
The King's Cup, which is awarded to the winning team in the cup finals of the National Championships in men's and women's football, is similar to the other trophies. The miniature trophies awarded to each of the players are a 16 cm high copy in which the royal monogram has been replaced with the Football Association's badge. [5]
Holmenkollbakken is a large ski jumping hill located at Holmenkollen in Oslo, Norway. It has a hill size of HS134, a construction point of K-120, and a capacity for 70,000 spectators. Holmenkollen has hosted the Holmenkollen Ski Festival since 1892, which since 1980 have been part of the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup and 1983 the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup. It has also hosted the 1952 Winter Olympics and the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in 1930, 1966, 1982 and 2011.
Olav Bjaaland was a Norwegian ski champion and polar explorer. In 1911, he was one of the first five men to reach the South Pole as part of Amundsen's South Pole expedition.
Bjørn Tore Wirkola is a Norwegian former ski jumper.
Sverre Stenersen was a Norwegian Nordic combined skier who dominated the event throughout the 1950s. His biggest triumphs were winning individual gold medals at the 1954 World Championships and 1956 Olympics. He also won a bronze at the 1952 Olympics and a silver at the 1958 World Championships. Stenersen won the Nordic combined event at the national championships in 1954–58 and at the Holmenkollen ski festival in 1955, 1956 and 1959. In 1955 he received the Holmenkollen medal, shared with King Haakon VII, Hallgeir Brenden, and Veikko Hakulinen.
Torolf Prytz was a Norwegian architect, goldsmith and politician for the Liberal Party. He led the goldsmith company J. Tostrup of Oslo from 1890 to 1938, having inherited it from his grandfather-in-law Jacob Tostrup. He also served as Norwegian Minister of Industrial Provisioning from 1917 to 1918 and President of the Norwegian Red Cross from 1922 to 1930.
Lauritz Bergendahl was a Norwegian Nordic skier who won both the Nordic combined and the 50 km cross-country skiing events at the Holmenkollen ski festival in 1910, 1912, 1913, 1914, and 1915. Bergendahl's Holmenkollen 50 km cross-country skiing victories have only been exceeded by one skier while his Holmenkollen Nordic combined victories have been matched by three others. Bergendahl earned the Holmenkollen medal in 1910 while his nephew Lars earned the honor in 1939.
Borghild Niskin was a Norwegian alpine skier who finished 7th in the women's giant slalom at the 1956 Winter Olympics at Cortina d'Ampezzo. She became the first woman awarded the Holmenkollen medal that same year.
Inger Bjørnbakken was a Norwegian alpine skier.
Astrid Sandvik is a Norwegian Alpine skier who finished tied for sixth place in the women's slalom at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo. In 1963, Sandvik was awarded the Holmenkollen medal. Sandvik is one of only eleven non-Nordic skiers to win the Holmenkollen medal.
Håkon Brusveen was a Norwegian cross-country skier. He competed in the individual 15 km and 4 × 10 km relay events at the 1956 and 1960 Olympics and won two medals in 1960: a gold in the 15 km and a silver in the relay; in 1956 he placed fifth and fourth, respectively. In 1958 he was awarded the Holmenkollen medal, and in 1960 the Morgenbladet Gold Medal. A freelance sports broadcaster for NRK for 35 years, he was a pioneering color commentator of cross-country skiing events.
Jacob Ulrich Holfeldt Tostrup was a Norwegian jeweler, goldsmith and silversmith.
Røa IL is a Norwegian sports club from Røa in the borough of Vestre Aker, Oslo. It was founded on 11 November 1900, and has sections for football, gymnastics, bandy, and cross-country skiing. Football, bandy, and Nordic skiing have been dominant in Røa. In bandy, the team has twice made it to the finals in the Norwegian cup, losing both to arch-rivals Stabæk. In skiing, the two foremost names are Olav Hansson, world champion team large hill ski jumping in the 1982 World Ski Championships and Martin Johnsrud Sundby, a Norwegian national team cross-country skier who won the FIS Cross-Country World Cup and the Tour de Ski in 2013–14.
Events in the year 1955 in Norway.
Nordstrand Idrettsforening is a sports club in Nordstrand, Oslo, Norway. The club has sections for alpine skiing, association football and handball. It formerly had sections for orienteering, track and field and Nordic skiing. The club colors are white and blue.
Skiklubben Ull was a Norwegian Nordic skiing club based in Oslo. Founded in 1883, Skiklubben Ull attracted several skilled sportsmen who between 1883 and 1891 won six Ladies' Cups and one King's Cup in national skiing events. The sporting facilities belonging the club were located in Vestre Aker, with the ski jumping hill Ullbakken near Frognerseteren being opened in 1884. The prestigious Husebyrennet was staged there once. Members of SK Ull were later instrumental in moving this prestigious contest to the hill Holmenkollbakken.
Karl Nikolai Roll was a Norwegian sports official, skier and military officer.
Nikolai Ramm Østgaard, sometimes referred to as N. R. Østgaard, was a Norwegian military officer, aide-de-camp for Olav V of Norway, and sports official who is best known as President of the International Ski Federation (FIS) from 1934 to 1951.
Skiklubben Odd was a Norwegian skiing club, based in Oslo.
The King's Choice is a 2016 biographical war film directed by Erik Poppe. It is a co-production of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Ireland, and was selected as the Norwegian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. The film made the shortlist of nine films to be considered for a nomination at the 89th Academy Awards.
The Holmenkollen 50 km is an annual cross-country skiing race held at Holmenkollen National Arena in Oslo, Norway. The competition is part of the Holmenkollen Ski Festival. Previous to 2023 The 50 km distance is raced by men only as the women's equivalent is a 30 km race. Starting in 2023 both men and women will race 50k.