There is every reason to celebrate the hundredth birthday of the federation that organises Norway’s national sport, and Norway Post is doing so in style with the issue of four new stamps. These stamps portray some of Norway’s many skiing activities, with fantastic glimpses of children and elite skiers.
They also show some of the Federation’s many mottoes down through the years, such as “Barn på ski er glade barn” (Children on skis are happy children) and “Flere skiløpere, bedre skiløpere” (More skiers, better skiers). Skiing as a sport has existed for hundreds of years. Organised skiing in Norway, starting with small skiing competitions here and there, dates back to the 1840s and 50s. Clubs were formed and by the beginning of the 20th century more than 200 skiing clubs were registered. As skiing techniques developed and the sport grew in scope, conflicts arose about the form of competitions and their rules and organi-sation. There was also a need for a Norwegian spokesman on international issues. Attempts to establish a national organisation were unsuccessful until 21 February 1908, when a meeting arranged in Kristiania (Oslo) by the Association for the Promotion of Skiing resulted in the founding of the Norwegian Ski Federation. Initially only 19 clubs and one district joined, but membership grew quickly and soon included all of Norway’s skiing clubs and districts. Captain Karl Roll, commander of the King’s Guard, was elected first president of the federation. The Norwegian Ski Federation is divided into 19 districts. It has around 1150 member clubs with a total of 152,000 members, making it Norway’s second largest sports federation after football. The Federation organises cross-country, Nordic combined, alpine, freestyle and Telemark skiing and ski jumping. Over the past hundred years, the Norwegian Ski Federation has done a great deal to promote interest in a healthy outdoor life and in the importance of keeping in good physical shape. Activities such as national school championships, merit badge tests and popular cross-country competitions are good examples of this. At elite level, skiing has given Norway many a proud moment and has enormous entertainment value.
Subjects: Thorleif Haug, Espen Bredesen, Children on skis, Kjetil André Aamodt
Design: Jørn O. Jøntvedt, Jan Kristian Haavi, Making Waves
Value: NOK 7.00 (A-Priority, domestic) x 4
Issue: 5 million of each stamp
Number: Four stamps successively on rolls of 100 stamps
Printing: Photogravure by Royal Joh. Enschedé, Netherlands
Sales prices:
First day cover: NOK 32.00
Presentation pack: NOK 33.00
Collector’s set: NOK 70.00
Collector’s sheet: NOK 48.00
Maximum card: NOK 60.00