Abstract
Shortly after he won three gold medals and one silver medal in distance running events at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, Finland's Hannes Kolehmainen immigrated to the United States. He spent nearly a decade living in Brooklyn, plying his trade as a mason and dominating the amateur endurance running circuit in his adopted homeland. He became a naturalised US citizen in 1921 but returned to Finland shortly thereafter. During his American sojourn, the US press depicted him simultaneously as an exotic foreign athlete and as an immigrant shaped by his new environment into a symbol of successful assimilation. Kolehmainen's career raised questions about sport and national identity - both Finnish and American - about the complexities of immigration during the floodtide of European migration to the US, and about native and adopted cultures in shaping the habits of success. His return to Finland ultimately turned the American 'melting pot' narrative on its head.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1035-1059 |
| Number of pages | 25 |
| Journal | International Journal of the History of Sport |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 1 2012 |
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All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- History
- Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
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The flying Finn's American sojourn : Hannes Kolehmainen in the United States, 1912-1921. / Berg, Adam; Dyreson, Mark.
In: International Journal of the History of Sport, Vol. 29, No. 7, 01.05.2012, p. 1035-1059.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
TY - JOUR
T1 - The flying Finn's American sojourn
T2 - Hannes Kolehmainen in the United States, 1912-1921
AU - Berg, Adam
AU - Dyreson, Mark
PY - 2012/5/1
Y1 - 2012/5/1
N2 - Shortly after he won three gold medals and one silver medal in distance running events at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, Finland's Hannes Kolehmainen immigrated to the United States. He spent nearly a decade living in Brooklyn, plying his trade as a mason and dominating the amateur endurance running circuit in his adopted homeland. He became a naturalised US citizen in 1921 but returned to Finland shortly thereafter. During his American sojourn, the US press depicted him simultaneously as an exotic foreign athlete and as an immigrant shaped by his new environment into a symbol of successful assimilation. Kolehmainen's career raised questions about sport and national identity - both Finnish and American - about the complexities of immigration during the floodtide of European migration to the US, and about native and adopted cultures in shaping the habits of success. His return to Finland ultimately turned the American 'melting pot' narrative on its head.
AB - Shortly after he won three gold medals and one silver medal in distance running events at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, Finland's Hannes Kolehmainen immigrated to the United States. He spent nearly a decade living in Brooklyn, plying his trade as a mason and dominating the amateur endurance running circuit in his adopted homeland. He became a naturalised US citizen in 1921 but returned to Finland shortly thereafter. During his American sojourn, the US press depicted him simultaneously as an exotic foreign athlete and as an immigrant shaped by his new environment into a symbol of successful assimilation. Kolehmainen's career raised questions about sport and national identity - both Finnish and American - about the complexities of immigration during the floodtide of European migration to the US, and about native and adopted cultures in shaping the habits of success. His return to Finland ultimately turned the American 'melting pot' narrative on its head.
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84863517122&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/09523367.2012.679025
DO - 10.1080/09523367.2012.679025
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:84863517122
VL - 29
SP - 1035
EP - 1059
JO - International Journal of the History of Sport
JF - International Journal of the History of Sport
SN - 0952-3367
IS - 7
ER -