Historical Results From Pre-World War II World Championships

Photo courtesy Czech National Library

It's really not an overstatement to say that one of the biggest misconceptions in figure skating history are how ISU Championships worked prior to World War II. More often than not, World Championships for different disciplines were held at different times in different countries. As the organization of these events was left largely to the host club or federation, it was extremely common for these events to consist of multiple competitions. Both women's and pairs events were indeed held prior to the first ones that the ISU recognized, as were valsing (waltzing) and tenstep competitions - precursors to the first ice dance competitions at the World Championships in the early fifties. These records not only paint a more accurate picture of these competitions, but shed further light on some of the careers of the top skaters of the early twentieth century. 

These results were compiled from various sources, including British, Swiss, Austrian, German, Swedish, Norwegian and Hungarian newspaper archives and back issues of "Skating" magazine. A very special thank you to German skating historian Dr. Matthias Hampe for his generous assistance with the correct names and spellings of many of the German and Austrian skaters that are listed.

A few notes:

- A '*' next to a category denotes that it was a World Championship event.

- In many cases, you will see multiple events for the same discipline. It wasn't uncommon for organizers to hold one competition for a World title and another for senior skaters who didn't wish to compete for that title. 

- Many of these competitions were also held in conjunction with speed skating races, ice hockey games, which haven't been noted.

1896

St. Petersburg, Russia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gilbert Fuchs	Gustav Hügel	Georg Sanders
Special Figures	Georg Sanders	Gilbert Fuchs	Gustav Hügel

1897

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gustav Hügel	Ulrich Salchow	Johan Peter Lefstad

1898

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Henning Grenander	Gustav Hügel	Gilbert Fuchs
Challenge Shield For Combined Skating In The English Style (British Championship)	C.E. Bell's team (C.E. Bell, H.M. Morris, D. Mann, Robert Muirhead Hewett)	International Skating Club of Davos (J. Le Fleming, George K. Wood, H.B. Hawes, E. Gwynne-Evans)	Ipswich team (L.E. Pretty, Frank Pretty, Stanley Turner, S.A. Notcutt)

1899

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gustav Hügel	Ulrich Salchow	Edgar Syers

1900

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gustav Hügel	(no other competitors)

1901

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gilbert Fuchs	(no other competitors)
Pairs (International Amateur Figure Skating Championships for the Nordiska Spelens pris)	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Gustav Euler	Madge and Edgar Syers	Hedwig Müller and Martin Gordan
Men (International Amateur Figure Skating Championships for the Nordiska Spelens pris)	Oscar Holthe	Einar de Flon	Martin Gordan
Same-Sex Pairs (Nordisks Spelens pris)	Egron Wirström and Nils Rosenius	E. Ehrnström and E. Nordling	Walter Rosenberger and Per Thorén

1902

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Madge Syers	Martin Gordan
Pairs	Madge and Edgar Syers	Emmy Sjöberg and Christian Soldan	Hedwig (Müller) Weingartner and Martin Gordan
Valsing	Gladys Duddell and French Brewster	Miss Irby and Mr. Adams	Miss Marshall and Mr. Clayton
English Style – Challenge Cup (Combined Skating)	Frank G. Fedden (partnered by H.M. Morris)	Phyllis Squire (partnered by H.D. Hoffman)	H.M. Morris (partnered by Frank G. Fedden)
English Style – Individual (British Championships)	Frank G. Fedden	Alan J. Davidson	(no other competitors)
English Style – Team (British Championships)	H.D. Hoffman's team (H.D. Hoffmann, Phyllis Squire, H.M. Morris, H.M. Elder)	Figure Skating Club team (Frank G. Fedden, George R. Wood, Alan J. Davidson, F.T. Leeming)	Mr. Hawes' team (F.B.O. Hawes, A.W. Bristow, W.A. Russell, R. Moreland)

1903

St. Petersburg, Russia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Nikolay Panin-Kolomenkin	Max Bohatsch
Pairs	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Carl Euler	Mizzi and Max Bohatsch	(no other competitors)
Men (Jubilee Prize)	Herr Roß	Karl Ollo	Fedor Datlin

1904

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Heinrich Burger	Martin Gordan
Pairs (Jubilee Prize)	Madge and Edgar Syers	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Gustav Euler	Fraulein Müller and Herr Rasche
Men (Jubilee Prize)	Anton Steiner	Herr Hoffmann	Ernst Lassahn
Pairs (Internationales Paarlaufen)	Frau and Anton Beranek	Frau and Herr Hoffmann	Frieda Bellinger and Franz Zilly
Junior Men	Max Rendschmidt	Herr Hagenow	Adolf Schmidt

1905

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Max Bohatsch	Per Thorén
Women (International Amateur Figure Skating Championships for the Nordiska Spelens pris)	Muriel Harrison	Lili Kronberger	Mrs. Kellie
Pairs (International Amateur Figure Skating Championships for the Nordiska Spelens pris)	Mizzi and Max Bohatsch	Madge and Edgar Syers	Valborg and Emil Lindahl
Men (International Amateur Figure Skating Championships for the Nordiska Spelens pris)	Bror Meyer	Karl Axel Holmström	Nils Rosenius

1906

Munich, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gilbert Fuchs	Heinrich Burger	Bror Meyer
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Fraulein Beer and Ludwig Niedermayer	Frau and Grete Pfeiffer
Men (German Championships)	Heinrich Burger	Karl Zenger	Martin Gordan
Junior Men	Georg Velisch	Alois Wilschek	Robert Sonder
Junior Women	Elsa Rendschmidt	Anna Hübler	(no other competitors)

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (European Championships)	Ulrich Salchow	Ernst Herz	Per Thorén
Women*	Madge Syers	Jenny Herz	Lili Kronberger
Pairs	Madge and Edgar Syers	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson
Women (Internationales Damenlaufen)	Elsa Rendschmidt	Jenny Herz	Anna Hübler

1907

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Max Bohatsch	Gilbert Fuchs
Women*	Madge Syers	Jenny Herz	Lili Kronberger
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson	Madge and Edgar Syers
Pairs “for all couples not going to big pair skating”	Helene Kuich and Karl Mejstrik	Else Barthel and Alois Wilschek	(no other competitors)
Karl von Korper Prize	Max Rendschmidt	Fedor Datlin	Gustav Schöning

1908

Troppau, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gilbert Fuchs	Heinrich Burger
Women*	Lili Kronberger	Elsa Rendschmidt	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Else Barthel and Alois Wilschek	Helene Kuich and Karl Mejstrik
Men (Internationales Seniorlaufen)	Alois Wilschek	Oscar Hoppe	Erich Gutleben

St. Petersburg, Russia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (Alexander Panschin Wanderpreis)	Nikolay Panin-Kolomenkin	Ulrich Salchow	Karl Ollo
Women	Lili Kronberger	Elsa Rendschmidt	Elna Montgomery
Pairs*	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson	Lidia Popova and Aleksandr Fischer

1909

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Per Thorén	Ernst Herz
Women	Elsa Rendschmidt	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Elna Montgomery
Pairs*	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson	Valborg Lindahl and Nils Rosenius	Gertrud Ström and Richard Johansson

Budapest, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (European Championships)	Ulrich Salchow	Gilbert Fuchs	Per Thorén
Women*	Lili Kronberger	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Helene Kuich and Karl Mejstrik	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson
Men (International Senior Herrenkunst)	Andor Szende	Walter Jakobsson	Ludwig Richard
Women (International Senior Damenkunst)	Jenny Herz	Elsa Rendschmidt	Zsófia Méray-Horváth
Junior Men	Robert Sander	George Müller	B. Wrobel
Junior Women	Helene Fräter	Hedwig Müller	Hermine Proschel-Kunz

1910

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Werner Rittberger	Andor Szende
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson	Hedwig (Müller) and Hugo Winzer

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Elsa Rendschmidt	Lili Kronberger	(no other competitors)
Pairs*	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson

1911

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Werner Rittberger	Fritz Kachler
Women	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Grete Strasilla	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Alice Rolle and Bruno Grauel	Else and Heinrich Weber	(no other competitors)
Valsing	Else and Heinrich Weber	Alice Rolle and Bruno Grauel	Fraulein Lehmann and Herr Maerländer
Junior Men	Artur Vieregg	F. Born	Erwin Schwarzböck

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men	Fritz Kachler	Harald Rooth	Walter Jakobsson
Women*	Lili Kronberger	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Ludovika Eilers
Pairs*	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)
Junior Men	Artur Vieregg	Rudolf Kutzer	Erwin Schwarzböck

1912

Manchester, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Fritz Kachler	Werner Rittberger	Andor Szende
Pairs*	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Alexia (Schøien) and Yngvar Bryn
Junior	Basil Williams	Walter Hennig	Herbert James Clarke

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Dorothy Greenhough Smith	Phyllis (Squire) Johnson
Junior Men	Basil Williams	Francis Pigueron	Ernst Seitz
Waltzing	Daphne Wrinch and Herr H. Jensen	Lady Cadogan and Arthur Cumming	Gwendolyn Lycett and Louis Magnus

1913

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Fritz Kachler	Willy Böckl	Andor Szende
Junior Men	Alfred Berger	Karl Linsenmeyer	Ferdinand Weber

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (Nordiska Spelens Prize)	Gösta Sandahl	Harald Rooth	Arthur Cumming
Women*	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Phyllis (Squire) Johnson	Svea Norén
Pairs*	Helene Engelmann and Karl Mejstrik	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Leo Horwitz
Women (International Prize)	Eva Lindahl	Astrid Nordsveen	Margit Johansen

1914

Helsinki, Finland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gösta Sandahl	Fritz Kachler	Willy Böckl
Women	Anna-Lisa Allardt	Magda Mauroy	(no other competitors)

St. Moritz, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Zsófia Méray-Horváth	Angela Hanka	Phyllis (Squire) Johnson
Pairs*	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Helene Engelmann and Karl Mejstrik	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Leo Horwitz
Junior Men	Paul Jarosz	Kenneth Macdonald Beaumont	Herbert James Clarke

1922

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gillis Grafström	Fritz Kachler	Willy Böckl
Women*	Herma Szabo	Svea Norén	Margot Moe
Pairs	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Helfrid and Agard Palm	(no other competitors)

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Pairs*	Helene Engelmann and Alfred Berger	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Margarethe and Paul Metzner

1923

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Fritz Kachler	Willy Böckl	Gösta Sandahl
Women*	Herma Szabo	Gisela Reichmann	Svea Norén
Pairs	Margrete Weise and Georg Velisch	Lisl Meisner and Oscar Hoppe	Elle and Öskar May
Men (Senior, not contesting World title)	Jack Ferguson Page	Emil von Bertanlaffy	Karl Kronfuss
Women (Senior, not contesting World title)	Käthe Wulff	Hildegard Thiel	Mizzi Schilling

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (European Championships)	Willy Böckl	Martin Stixrud	Gunnar Jakobsson
Women	Herma Szabo	Margot Moe	Ingrid Guldbransen
Pairs*	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Alexia and Yngvar Bryn	Elna Henrikson and Kaj af Ekström

1924

Manchester, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gillis Grafström	Willy Böckl	Ernst Oppacher
Women	Ethel Muckelt	Cecil Smith	Kathleen Shaw
Pairs*	Helene Engelmann and Alfred Berger	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Elna Henrikson and Kaj af Ekström
Waltz	Miss Lancashire and Henry C. Lowther	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Kathleen Lovett and Albert Proctor Burman
Tenstep	Miss Lancashire and Henry C. Lowther	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Miss Aspinall and Mr. Burwell

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men	Zakken Johansen Jr.	Jens Larsen	(no other competitors)
Women*	Herma Szabo	Ellen Brockhöft	Beatrix Loughran
Pairs	Randi Bakke and Christen Christensen	Margit and Bjarne Engebretsen	Fru Quinland and Herr Zürig

1925

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Fritz Kachler	Otto Preißecker
Women (Internationales Damen-Kunstlaufen um den Gurschnerpreis)	Melitta Brunner	Ilse Hornung	Hildegard Thiel
Pairs*	Herma Szabo and Ludwig Wrede	Andrée Joly and Pierre Brunet	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser
Men (Internationales Herren-Kunstlaufen um den Preis des Wiener Eislauf-Vereines)	Ernst Oppacher	Hugo Distler	Paul Jarosz

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women	Herma Szabo	Ellen Brockhöft	Elisabeth Böckel

1926

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Otto Preißecker	Jack Ferguson Page
Women	Ellen Brockhöft	Elisabeth Böckel	Hildegard Thiel
Pairs*	Andrée Joly and Pierre Brunet	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Herma Szabo and Ludwig Wrede
Men (Senioren Kunstlaufen)	Walter Jakobsson	Paul Jarosz	Herbert Haertel
Pairs (Senioren Paarlaufen)	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Else Flebbe and Bruno Grauel	Else and Oscar Hoppe
Valsing (“Berliner Zeitung Preis”)	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Else Flebbe and Bruno Grauel	Olga Schiffelers and Robert van Zeebroeck

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women	Herma Szabo	Sonja Henie	Kathleen Shaw

1927

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Otto Preißecker	Karl Schäfer
Pairs	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Ilse Kishauer and Ernst Gaste	(no other competitors)

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men	Walter Müller	Artur Vieregg	O.R. Kolderup
Women*	Sonja Henie	Herma Szabo	Karen Simensen

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men (European Championships)	Willy Böckl	Hugo Distler	Karl Schäfer
Women	Herma Szabo	Fritzi Burger	Melitta Brunner
Pairs*	Herma Szabo and Ludwig Wrede	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Liesl and Oscar Hoppe
Men (international senior)	Herbert Haertel	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)
Waltzing	Minna Klingel and Willy Petter	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)

1928

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Karl Schäfer	Hugo Distler
Women	Fritzi Burger	Melitta Brunner	Ellen Brockhöft
Pairs	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Ilse Kishauer and Ernst Gaste
Men	Markus Nikkanen	Ernst Baier	Hugo Danzig
Junior Men	Ernst Baier	William Nagle	Rudolf Praznowski
Junior Women	Lilly Weiller	Grete Lainer	Annemarie Deitze
Tanz-Wettbewerb (Dance Competition)	Frieda Staffa and Eugen Richter	Trude Wintersteiner and Walter Malek	Frau and Herr Strumling

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Maribel Vinson	Fritzi Burger
Pairs*	Andrée Joly and Pierre Brunet	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede
Waltzing	Kathleen Lovett and Jack Ferguson Page	Maribel Vinson and Roger Turner	Dorothy Greenhough Smith and Conrad Rivett

1929

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gillis Grafström	Karl Schäfer	Ludwig Wrede
Women	Fritzi Burger	Melitta Brunner	Kathleen Shaw
Pairs	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Ilse Kishauer and Ernst Gaste	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page

Budapest, Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Fritzi Burger	Melitta Brunner
Pairs*	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Olga Orgonista and Sándor Szalay

1930

New York City, United States

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Roger Turner	Georges Gautschi
Women*	Sonja Henie	Cecil Smith	Maribel Vinson
Pairs*	Andrée (Joly) and Pierre Brunet	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Beatrix Loughran and Sherwin Badger

1931

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Roger Turner	Ernst Baier
Women*	Sonja Henie	Hilde Holovsky	Fritzi Burger
Pairs*	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Olga Orgonista and Sándor Szalay	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack

1932

Montreal, Canada

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Montgomery 'Bud' Wilson	Ernst Baier
Women*	Sonja Henie	Fritzi Burger	Constance (Wilson) Samuel
Pairs*	Andrée (Joly) and Pierre Brunet	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Beatrix Loughran and Sherwin Badger

1933

Zürich, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Ernst Baier	Markus Nikkanen
Women	Hilde Holovsky	Grete Lainer	Olly Holzmann
Pairs	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Hansi Kast and Otto Kaiser	Mr. and Mrs. Anderson

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Vivi-Anne Hultén	Hilde Holovsky
Pairs*	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Randi Bakke and Christen Christensen

1934

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Ernst Baier	Erich Erdös
Women	Megan Taylor	Vivi-Anne Hultén	Maribel Vinson
Pairs	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Megan Taylor	Liselotte Landbeck

Helsinki, Finland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men	Markus Nikkanen	Dénes Pataky	Erich Erdös
Pairs*	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier

1935

Budapest, Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Jack Dunn	Dénes Pataky
Pairs*	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Lucy Gallo and Rezső Dillinger
Junior Men	Herbert Alward	Béla Barcza	Kristóf Kállay
Junior Women	Hedy Stenuf	Éva von Botond	Gina von Botond

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Cecilia Colledge	Vivi-Anne Hultén

1936

Paris, France

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Henry Graham Sharp	Felix Kaspar
Women*	Sonja Henie	Megan Taylor	Vivi-Anne Hultén
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Violet (Supple) and Leslie Cliff

1937

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Felix Kaspar	Henry Graham Sharp	Elemér Terták
Women	Emmy Puzinger	Hanne Niernberger	Martha Maria Mayerhans

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Cecilia Colledge	Megan Taylor	Vivi-Anne Hultén
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Violet (Supple) and Leslie Cliff

1938

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Felix Kaspar	Henry Graham Sharp	Herbert Alward
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Inge Koch and Günther Noack
Junior Women	Herta Wächtler	Anita Wageler	Erna Scheibert

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Megan Taylor	Cecilia Colledge	Hedy Stenuf

1939

Budapest, Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Henry Graham Sharp	Freddie Tomlins	Horst Faber
Women (Jubilee Prize)	Daphne Walker	Hanne Niernberger	Éva von Botond
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Inge Koch and Günther Noack

Prague, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Megan Taylor	Hedy Stenuf	Daphne Walker

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Historical Results From Pre-World War II European Championships

Photo courtesy Czech National Library

It's really not an overstatement to say that one of the biggest misconceptions in figure skating history are how ISU Championships worked prior to World War II. More often than not, European Championships for different disciplines were held at different times in different countries. As the organization of these events was left largely to the host club or federation, it was extremely common for these events to consist of multiple competitions. Both women's and pairs events were indeed held prior to the first ones that the ISU recognized, as were valsing (waltzing) competitions. These records not only paint a more accurate picture of these competitions, but shed further light on some of the careers of the top skaters of the early twentieth century. 

These results were compiled from various sources, including British, Swiss, Austrian, German, Swedish, Norwegian and Hungarian newspaper archives and back issues of "Skating" magazine. A very special thank you to German skating historian Dr. Matthias Hampe for his generous assistance with the correct names and spellings of many of the German and Austrian skaters that are listed.

A few notes:

- A '*' next to a category denotes that it was a World Championship event.

- In many cases, you will see multiple events for the same discipline. It wasn't uncommon for organizers to hold one competition for a World title and another for senior skaters who didn't wish to compete for that title. 

- Many of these competitions were also held in conjunction with speed skating races, ice hockey games, which haven't been noted.

1891

Hamburg, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Oskar Uhlig	A. Schmitson	Franz Zilly

1892

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Eduard Engelmann Jr.	Tibor von Földváry	Georg Zachariades
Junior Men	Gustav Hügel	Emil Ritter von Meissner	(no other competitors)

1893

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Eduard Engelmann Jr.	Tibor von Földváry	Georg Zachariades

In 1895, the ISU nullified the results of this competition. An account of this event in the February 4, 1893 issue of "The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News" noted, "E. Engelmann was the most graceful skater, but on the judges' cards being examined it was noted that there was a fractionally larger vote for H. Grenander. A further examination, however, showed that there were serious errors on the part of some of the judges, and Mr. [W.J.H.] Mulier, on behalf of the International Skating Union, refused to allow the prizes to be awarded, and has reported the whole matter to the general committee of the Union."

1894

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Eduard Engelmann Jr.	Gustav Hügel	Tibor von Földváry
Pairs	Christine Engelmann and Karl Euler	Mizzi Beck and Ludwig Fänner	Sofie Reininger and M. Deuerling
Junior Men	Emil Ritter von Meissner	Josef Fellner	S. Brauner

1895

Budapest, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Tibor von Földváry	Gustav Hügel	Gilbert Fuchs
Pairs	Christine Engelmann and Karl Euler	Carla Edle von Nagy-Búkk and Otto Schwarz	Mizzi Beck and Ludwig Fänner

1898

Trondheim, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Johan Peter Lefstad	Oscar Holthe

1899

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gustav Hügel	Ernst Fellner

1900

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gustav Hügel	Oscar Holthe
Pairs	Mizzi and Otto Bohatsch	Madge Cave and Edgar Syers	Else Neubeck and Gustav Stahlberg
Same-Sex Pairs	Karl and Gustav Euler	Egon Robitsek and Adolph Kleeman	Gustav Feix and Anton Steiner
Men (International)	Oscar Holthe	Joseph Weiss	Richard Meidinger
Junior Men	Edgar Syers	Anton Steiner	(no other competitors)
Men "for the honorary award of the imperial capital and residence in the city of Vienna"	Gustav Euler	Alfred Klement	Max Bohatsch

1901

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gustav Hügel	Gilbert Fuchs	Ulrich Salchow
Same-Sex Pairs	Carl and Gustav Euler	Wilhelm Weißmandl and Mony Kleeman	Egon Robitsek and Adolph Kleeman
Men (Internationales Reulings-Kunstlaufen)	Adolph Kleeman	Robert**	Leo Geiger
Men (Der Preis der Stadt Wein)	Max Bohatsch	Anton Steiner	Martin Gordan

**The January 14, 1901 issue of the "Neues Wiener Tagblatt" noted that "Robert", the second-place finisher in the Internationales Reulings-Kunstlaufen event, was competing under a pseudonym.

1904

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Max Bohatsch	Nikolay Panin-Kolomenkin
Pairs	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Gustav Euler	Madge and Edgar Syers	Phyllis Squire and James Henry Johnson

1905

Bonn, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Max Bohatsch	Heinrich Burger	Karl Zenger
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Frieda Bellinger and Franz Zilly	Fraulein Holbe and K. Nietz
Junior Men	Karl Schmidt	K. Nietz	Dr. H. Rüdiger
Junior Women	Anna Hübler	Fraulein Holbe	(no other competitors)

1906

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Ernst Herz	Per Thorén
Women (World Championships)	Madge Syers	Jenny Herz	Lili Kronberger
Pairs	Madge and Edgar Syers	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson
Women (Internationales Damenlaufen)	Elsa Rendschmidt	Jenny Herz	Anna Hübler

1907

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gilbert Fuchs	Ernst Herz
Women	Elsa Rendschmidt	Phyllis (Squire) Johnson	Anna Hübler
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Phyllis (Squire) and James Henry Johnson	(no other competitors)
Men (Senior)	Gustav Schöning	Karl Ollo	Max Rendschmidt
Men (Junior)	Alois Wilschek	Herr Gutleben	Adolf Schmidt

1908

Warsaw, Poland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Max Bohatsch	Nikolay Panin-Kolomenkin
Men (Senior)	Karl Ollo	Fedor Datlin	B. Wrobel

1909

Budapest, Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Gilbert Fuchs	Per Thorén
Women (World Championships)	Lili Kronberger	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger	Helene Kuich and Karl Mejstrik	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson
Men (International Senior Herrenkunst)	Andor Szende	Walter Jakobsson	Ludwig Richard
Women (International Senior Damenkunst)	Jenny Herz	Elsa Rendschmidt	Zsófia Méray-Horváth
Junior Men	Robert Sander	George Müller	B. Wrobel
Junior Women	Helene Fräter	Hedwig Müller	Hermine Proschel-Kunz

1910

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Werner Rittberger	Per Thorén
Women	Elsa Rendschmidt	Fraulein Sonder	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson	Fraulein and Robert Sonder	Else and Heinrich Weber
Men (Senior)	Fritz Kachler	Harald Rooth	Harry Paulsen
Junior Men	Louis Magnus	Herr Zollner	Herr Bomhardt
Junior Women	Ludovika Eilers	Fraulein Sonder	Grete Strasilla

1911

St. Petersburg, Russia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Per Thorén	Karl Ollo	Werner Rittberger
Women	Ludovika Eilers	Xenia Caesar	Lidia Popova
Pairs	Ludovika Eilers and Walter Jakobsson	(not recorded)	(not recorded)

1912

Stockholm, Sweden

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Gösta Sandahl	Ivan Malinin	Martin Stixrud

1913

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Ulrich Salchow	Andor Szende	Willy Böckl
Women	Margit Johansen	Astrid Nordsveen	Eva Lindahl
Pairs	Alexia Schøien and Yngvar Bryn	Solveig Andersen and Arthur Johannessen	Herr and Fraulein Jensen

1914

Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Fritz Kachler	Andreas Krogh	Willy Böckl
Women	Gisela Reichmann	Paula Zalaudek	(no other competitors)
Pairs	Christine (Engelmann) von Szabo and Leo Horwitz	Helene Engelmann and Karl Mejstrik	(no other competitors)
Men (Preis de Wiener Eislaufverein)	Ernst Oppacher	Erwin Schwarzböck	Josef Oppacher

1922

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Fritz Kachler	Ernst Oppacher

1923

Oslo, Norway

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Martin Stixrud	Gunnar Jakobsson
Women	Herma Szabo	Margot Moe	Ingrid Guldbransen
Pairs (World Championships)	Ludovika (Eilers) and Walter Jakobsson	Alexia and Yngvar Bryn	Elna Henrikson and Kaj af Ekström

1924

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Fritz Kachler	Ludwig Wrede	Werner Rittberger

1925

Triberg, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Werner Rittberger	Otto Preißecker
Women	Hildegard Thiel	Elisabeth Böckel	Käthe Wulff
Men (International)	Hugo Distler	Fritz Schober	Karl Kronfuss
Junior Men	Karl Kronfuss	Ernst Baier	Herr Strebel

1926

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Otto Preißecker	Georges Gautschi
Pairs	Gisela Hochhaltinger and Georg Pamperl	Ethel Muckelt and Jack Ferguson Page	Hertha Trauzl and Heinrich Schrepfer

1927

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Hugo Distler	Karl Schäfer
Women	Herma Szabo	Fritzi Burger	Melitta Brunner
Pairs (World Championships)	Herma Szabo and Ludwig Wrede	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Liesl and Oscar Hoppe
Men (international senior)	Herbert Haertel	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)
Waltzing	Minna Klingel and Willy Petter	(no other competitors)	(no other competitors)

1928

Troppau, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Willy Böckl	Karl Schäfer	Otto Preißecker
Women	Melitta Brunner	Edith Hecht	Gerda Hornung
Pairs	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Else and Oscar Hoppe	Emília Rotter and László Szollás

1929

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Georges Gautschi	Ludwig Wrede
Women	Melitta Brunner	Ilse Hornung	Else Flebbe
Pairs	Lilly Scholz and Otto Kaiser	Melitta Brunner and Ludwig Wrede	Gisela Hochhaltinger and Otto Preißecker

1930

Štrbské Pleso, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Josef Slíva	Karl Schäfer	Otto Gold

Due to judging irregularities, the results of this competition were nullified. A second competition was held in Berlin, Germany.

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Otto Gold	Markus Nikkanen
Women	Fritzi Burger	Vivi-Anne Hultén	Ilse Hornung
Pairs	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Ilse Kishauer and Ernst Gaste	Else and Oscar Hoppe

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Fritzi Burger	Ilse Hornung	Vivi-Anne Hultén
Pairs*	Olga Orgonista and Sándor Szalay	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Gisela Hochhaltinger and Otto Preißecker

1931

Vienna, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Ernst Baier	Hugo Distler
Women (Internationales Damen-Kunstlaufen um den Wanderpreis des Vereines Kunsteisbahn am Sportsplatz Engelmann)	Ilse Hornung	Helga Schrittwieser-Dietz	Olly Holzmann
Pairs	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Gitta Rimmel and Adolf Rosdol	Ridi and Pepo Jauernigg

St. Moritz, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men	Hugo Distler	Marcell Vadas	Ernst Baier
Women*	Sonja Henie	Fritzi Burger	Hilde Holovsky
Pairs*	Olga Orgonista and Sándor Szalay	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Lilly Gaillard and Willy Petter
Junior Men	Erich Erdös	Leslie White	Richard Hammer
Junior Women	Liselotte Landbeck	Megan Taylor	Olly Holzmann

1932

Paris, France

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Ernst Baier	Erich Erdös
Women*	Sonja Henie	Fritzi Burger	Vivi-Anne Hultén
Pairs*	Andrée (Joly) and Pierre Brunet	Lilly (Scholz) Gaillard and Willy Petter	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack

1933

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Ernst Baier	Erich Erdös
Women*	Sonja Henie	Cecilia Colledge	Fritzi Burger
Pairs*	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Lilly (Scholz) Gaillard and Willy Petter	Mollie Phillips and Rodney Murdoch
Waltzing	Ethel Muckelt and Ronald D. Gilbey	Violet Supple and Leslie Cliff	Betty Meakin and Jack Dunn

1934

Seefeld, Austria

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Dénes Pataky	Elemér Terták
Women	Liselotte Landbeck	Grete Lainer	Helga Schrittwieser-Dietz
Pairs	Herta Baumgartner and Rolf Stillebacher	Fraulein Tusak and Herr Ballazs	Mlle. Hauser and Erwin Keller
Men (Senior)	T.C. Patrick Low	Emil Ratzenhofer	Ernst Fenner
Junior Women	Emmy Puzinger	Hertha Dexler	Bianca Schenk

Prague, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Sonja Henie	Liselotte Landbeck	Maribel Vinson
Pairs*	Emília Rotter and László Szollás	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Zofia Bilorówna and Tadeusz Kowalski

1935

St. Moritz, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Felix Kaspar	Ernst Baier
Women*	Sonja Henie	Liselotte Landbeck	Cecilia Colledge
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Idi Papez and Karl Zwack	Lucy Gallo and Rezső Dillinger
Junior Men	Herbert Alward	Gunther Lorenz	(no other competitors)
Junior Women	Maria Schweinburg	Angela Anderes	Daphne Walker

1936

Berlin, Germany

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Karl Schäfer	Henry Graham Sharp	Ernst Baier
Women*	Sonja Henie	Cecilia Colledge	Megan Taylor
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Violet (Supple) and Leslie Cliff	Piroska and Attila Szekrényessy

1937

Prague, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Felix Kaspar	Henry Graham Sharp	Elemér Terták
Women*	Cecilia Colledge	Megan Taylor	Emmy Puzinger
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Piroska and Attila Szekrényessy

1938

St. Moritz, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Felix Kaspar	Henry Graham Sharp	Herbert Alward
Women*	Cecilia Colledge	Megan Taylor	Emmy Puzinger
Pairs	Inge Koch and Günther Noack	Violet (Supple) and Leslie Cliff	Pierrette and Paul Du Bois

Troppau, Czechoslovakia

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Inge Koch and Günther Noack
Junior Men	Elemér Terták	Emil Ratzenhofer	Ferenc Kertesz
Junior Women	Nadine Szilassy	Lilly König	Anna Pollack

1939

Davos, Switzerland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Men*	Henry Graham Sharp	Freddie Tomlins	Horst Faber

London, England

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Women*	Cecilia Colledge	Megan Taylor	Daphne Walker
British Junior Men	Dennis Silverthorne	Adrian Pryce-Jones	Peter J. Scholes
British Junior Women	Elizabeth M. Whittington	Winnie Silverthorne	K. Everard

Zakopane, Poland

Category	Winner	2nd	3rd
Pairs*	Maxi Herber and Ernst Baier	Ilse and Erich Pausin	Inge Koch and Günther Noack

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