Valentine Bialas

Valentine Bialas had a very long speed skating career that came to a tragic end. Never a national champion, his biggest championship was the International Speed Skating title in Detroit in 1926. He also later established an American record for two miles, with a time of 5:35.5 set in 1929 in Lake Placid. After competing in three Winter Olympics, Bialas continued to compete and made the 1936 Winter Olympic team as well. But after returning from a meet while training for the Olympics, he was involved in a serious accident when his car was struck by a train, and he lost a leg from the injury. After being fitted with a prosthesis, he continued to skate recreationally and also played in city tennis tournaments. He was inducted into the US Speed Skating Hall of Fame in 1963. In his hometown of Utica, New York, the Val Bialas Ski Center is named in his honor.

Personal Bests: 500 – 46.4 (1928); 1500 – 2:24.5 (1933); 5000 – 8:48.7 (1933); 10000 – 18:17.1 (1933).