The Icelandic Sports Federation was founded on 28th January
1912. The Olympic Committee of Iceland (NOC) was founded on
the 29th of September 1921. The NOC was recognised by the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) during the 34th session in
Oslo on the 11th of January 1935. The NOC and the Sports
Federation were merged together on November 1st 1997.
Island is an island situated in the middle of the North Atlantic
Ocean between Greenland Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. Due to the
Gulf Stream, this country enjoys a warmer climate than is suggested
by its northern location. The country is mountainous, making travel
difficult but there are good roads connecting towns and villages so
that it is easy for these population centres to co-ordinate
extensive sport activities. The topograhy consists of arable
land:1,0 %, permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 1%,
glaciers cover approximately 11% of the land surface, other: 67%.
In addition to the surface area the island has full authority over
200 miles of territorial waters.
Iceland was settled during the years 874-930. The settlers mostly
came from Norway but also from the British Isles, most of the
latter being of Celtic origin. These settlers brought with them
games, physical activities and bathing customs (the sweat-hut and
bathing pools which the built near natural Hot Springs). Since
ancient times Saturday is still known as "Laugardagur" which means
the bathing day. They also brought with them a form of wrestling
which over the years has developed into traditional wrestling, now
known as the "Icelandic Wrestling Glíma" intended for
entertainment. Demonstrations of this sport were also presented in
the Olympic stadium and in theatres during the Olympic Games in
London in 1908.
The settlers also brought to Iceland a ball game played with a bat
or burley and a ball, both made of wood. The game resembled the
ancient Irish sport of Burley and was played for 3 - 4
centuries.
The Republic of Iceland is a parlamentary democracy with a
republican constitution. The constitution of Iceland, adopted in
1944, guarantees freedom of the press, assembly, association and
religion, freedom of deprivation of property and freedom of
residence. Icelandic laws include a provision dating back to 1281,
stating that anyone participating voluntarily in certain sports is
responsible for himself and can withdraw whenever he so chooses
without being compelled to continue.
Organised sports in Iceland began about 130 years ago. Several
athletics clubs were established at that time, but most were
discontinued due to the lack of facilities. Shortly after the turn
of the century, however several athletic clubs were established
which are still in function.
Iceland participated for the first time in the Olympic Games in
London in 1908 and again in Stockholm in 1912. The Icelandic Sports
Federation (Íthrottasamband Íslands) was founded in 1912, before
the Stockholm Olympiad. One Icelandic athlete took part in the
Olympic Games in 1920. He competed under the Danish flag, since he
was a student in Denmark. Twelve members founded the first NOC in
1921; however, the NOC did not participate in the Olympics again
until the 1936 under the guidance of a new committee that was
formed in 1934. The IOC officially recognised the NOC of Iceland in
1935. In 1946, Mr. Benedikt WAAGE became a member of the IOC.
Iceland did not participate in the Olympics during the
Depression years due to lack of funds but have taken part in the
Olympics from the Games in 1936 with one exception i.e. the Winter
Games in Sapporo in Japan.
Iceland is one of the smallest nations attending the Olympics
and this is reflected in the small numbers of medals won by Iceland
at the Olympics. Iceland won the first medal in the 1956 Olympics
in Melbourne when Vilhjálmur EINARSSON took second place in the
triple jump. In the Olympics in Los Angeles the Icelandic team of
32 athletes was quite successful. The best result was achieved by
Bjarni FRIDRIKSSON by winning the bronze medal in the 90 kg judo
division. Einar VILHJÁLMSSON took 6th place in javelin throw and
the Icelandic Handball Team finished in 6th place. Only few days
before the Olympics in Barcelona the Icelandic Handball Team was
asked to replace Yugoslavia. In spite of this short notice the
Handball Team earned the 4th place. Sigurdur EINARSSON took 5th
place in the Javelin Throw at the Games in Barcelona.
The NOC of Iceland had 18 athletes participate in the Olympic
Games in Sydney. The highligts of the Games was when Ms. Vala
FLOSADOTTIR won a Bronze medal in Pole Vaulting clearing the height
of 4.50m. which was a National Record. Mr. Orn ARNARSON placed 4th
in the 200m Back Stroke and Ms. Gudrun ARNARDOTTIR placed 7th in
the 400m Hurdles.
In Beijing 2008 the Men‘s Icelandic Handball Team won the
Silver Medal. That was a historical achievement for team
sport in Iceland. With the President of Iceland and the
Minister of Education, Culture and Sports attending the handball
competition, the team won it‘s way all the way to the Gold Match
and earned admiration from worldwide.
This list would not be complete without mentioning one of the
greatest Icelandic sportsmen in history, Mr. Jóhannes JÓSEFSSON,
who was a very popular wrestler both in Iceland and abroad. He
participated in the 1908 Olympic Games and finished forth in
middleweight Greco-Roman wrestling. Another great athlete from this
period was also a wrestler, Mr. Sigurjón PÉTURSSON, a heavyweight
competitor at the Olympics in 1912 where he finished in 5 - 9th
place.
The Icelandic Olympic Academy was created on March the 25th in
1987. One of its primary tasks has been planning courses and giving
lectures at the Icelandic College of Physical Education. The
Academy also meets with present and future Physical Education
teachers and coaches and informs them about the history of the
Olympic Games and the history of sports in Iceland.
The NOC was a single centralised organisation until 1. November
1997 when the NOC and the Icelandic Sport Federation of Iceland
were merged into one organisation.
The years 1996 and 1997 were years of preparation for the merging
of the Icelandic Sport Federation and the National Olympic
Committee. The leadership used almost all its energy and time on
bringing about this important change in the structure of organized
sport in Iceland. On September 28th 1997 the merging was finally
and unanimously agreed, both in an extraordinary general assembly
of the Icelandic Sport Federation and in an extraordinary general
assembly of the National Olympic Committee. This first step towards
a better and stronger organization was a big step for the sport
movement in Iceland. The new organization was named Íthrótta- og
Ólympíusamband Íslands - The National Olympic and Sports
Association of Iceland (hereafter referred to as the new NOC or the
NOC).
On November 1st-2nd 1997, the first general assembly of the new
NOC was held in Reykjavik. The number of delegates was 220 and
including guests and staff the participants were about 300. The
President of Iceland, Mr. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson and the Minister
for Sport and Culture, Mr. Björn Bjarnason, were present at the
opening of this historical event.
A new emblem was designed for the new NOC. It consists of a
volcano, created from the colors of the national flag, spouting
fire that symbolizes the energy of Iceland and its people.
Currently there are 28 national sports Federations. The most
popular sports in Iceland are football, golf, equestrian, handball,
basketball, badminton, athletics and Sport for All. The greatest
growth has been in golf and equestrian sports. The sport
environment has been enriched in recent years with the addition of
several new sports.
The headquarters of the NOC are at the Sports Center in the
nation's capital, Reykjavík. Mr. Olafur E. RAFNSSON is the
President of the NOC and Ms. Liney Rut HALLDORSDOTTIR is the
Secretary General.