Ellen Osiier

Ellen Osiier
Ellen Osiier at the 1924 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Full nameEllen Ottilia Osiier-Thomsen
NationalityDanish
BornEllen Ottilia Thomsen
(1890-08-13)13 August 1890
Hjørring, Nordjylland, Denmark
Died6 September 1962(1962-09-06) (aged 72)
København, Denmark
OccupationFencing
Height168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Spouse
Ivan Joseph Martin Osiier
Medal record
Representing  Denmark
Fencing
Gold medal – first place 1924 Summer Olympics Individual foil

Ellen Osiier (13 August 1890 – 6 September 1962) was a Danish foil fencer and the first woman to be awarded a gold medal in fencing at the Olympic Games.[1][2] As of 2026, she remains the only Dane to win a gold medal in fencing at the Olympics.[1]

Fencing career

Osiier studied with Leonce Mahaut, a French fencing instructor who was in high demand in Denmark at the time. He frequently held fencing socials at his "Salle d'Armes Mahaut" which were widely discussed in the papers of Copenhagen. In 1917, she joined the women's fencing club in Copenhagen, Damernes Fægte-Klub.[3]

The finalists of the women's foil competition at the 1924 Summer Olympics (from left to right): Grete Hercksher, Ellen Osiier, Yutta Barding, Muriel Freeman, Gladys Davis, and Gisèle Tary.

The 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris were the first Olympic Games to include women's fencing. Osiier, then 33, went undefeated in the 16 matches she fenced in the event.[4][5] She defeated Gladys Davis in the final to win the gold medal.[6] With this victory, Osiier became the Olympics' first woman fencing champion.[2]

As there were no official international fencing championships for women at the time, Osiier's career was relatively short and there is very little evidence that Osiier competitively fenced following the 1924 Olympics. In 1932, she had been asked to judge for the Summer Olympics, but claims of favoritism by a former teammate led her to be removed from the roster very shortly beforehand. She subsequently won a defamation lawsuit related to those claims.[3]

Personal life

Ellen Ottilia Thomsen was born on 13 August 1890 in Hjørring, Denmark. Her mother was Ane Kristine Jensen (1845–1902) and her father, Jens Christian Thomsen (1842–1918), was a master bricklayer and fire inspector.[7]

On 2 May 1919, she married Jewish physician Ivan Joseph Martin Osiier, who was also a fencer.[1][3][7] The couple had been engaged for five years, but were forced to delay their wedding due to World War I.[3] He had competed for Denmark at the 1912 Olympics where he won a silver medal in individual épée. Ivan went on to compete in 7 olympic games and win 25 Danish national championships in three weapons.[8][9]

In 1943, she and her husband fled to Stockholm when Denmark came under direct military control of Nazi Germany. They returned to Copenhagen after the end of World War II.[3] Ellen Osiier died on 8 September 1962 in Copenhagen.[7] She and her husband were buried at Bispebjerg Cemetery.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Ellen Ottilia Osiier". Olympics. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  2. ^ a b Findling, John E.; Pelle, Kimberly D. (1996). Historical Dictionary of the Modern Olympic Movement. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 64. ISBN 9780313284779. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e Wittich, Elke (30 May 2024). "Dänische Fechterin bei Olympia-Premiere: Gold und sonst nichts". Taz (in German). Archived from the original on 5 July 2025. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  4. ^ Fuller, Linda K. (2016). Female Olympians: A Mediated Socio-Cultural and Political-Economic Timeline. Worcester: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 35. ISBN 9781137582812. LCCN 2016955706.
  5. ^ "Paris 1924: Games of the VIII Olympiad". Olympics. Archived from the original on 3 March 2007. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
  6. ^ Radnedge, Keir (2011). Olympic and World Records 2012. Carlton. p. 156. ISBN 9781847328410.
  7. ^ a b c Vangdrup, Arne (18 July 2011). "Ivan Osiier". Danmarks Nationalleksikon (in Danish). Dansk Biografisk Leksikon. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  8. ^ "Google". Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  9. ^ "Olympic History for Sporting Families". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  10. ^ "Ellen Osiier". gravsted.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 4 February 2026.
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