Knud Olsen
Encyclopedia
Knud Olsen Præstø
, Denmark
) is a Danish builder and designer of boats, who was the designer of one of the most popular sailing dinghies in use over the past 50 years, the OK Dinghy
, which became an ISAF
International Class in 1974. The 50th anniversary of the design of the dinghy was marked by the largest ever OK Dinghy World Championships held at Leba
on the Polish
coast in July 2007.
ended the business. In the early 1950s, he joined the Danish company, A. P. Botved, who were producing speedboats, and worked there until he started his own business in Bandholm in 1961. He designed and built a number of boats including the Bandholm 26, the Bianca 27 and the Great Dane 28, which were the first Danish boats to be built using fibreglass hulls, the Bandholm 20, Bandholm 30, the Mariboat and the Bandholm 24.
In 1956, Danish architect, Axel Damgaard Olsen, asked Olsen to create a design for a light, fast, single-handed sailing dinghy that could be built and sailed by amateurs.
The outcome was the 4.5 metres OK dinghy, which went on to be a classic design, became an ISAF International Class in 1974 and is still used in international competition. The 50th anniversary of the design of the OK dinghy was marked by the largest ever OK Dinghy World Championships held at Leba
on the Polish
coast in July 2007.
Knud Olsen died aged 90 on 31st August 2010 in his hometown Bandholm.
Præstø
Præstø is a town with a population of 3,884 and a former municipality in Vordingborg Municipality in Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand near its southwestern tip in south Denmark. The former Præstø municipality included the islands of Maderne, Storeholm, and Lilleholm...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
) is a Danish builder and designer of boats, who was the designer of one of the most popular sailing dinghies in use over the past 50 years, the OK Dinghy
OK (dinghy)
-History:In 1957 Axel Dangaard Olsen of Seattle, U.S.A., asked the Danish yacht designer Knud Olsen to prepare drawings for a light and fast single-handed sailing dinghy based on conventional plywood construction. The resulting design was named the O.K., using Knud Olsen's initials in reverse.The...
, which became an ISAF
International Sailing Federation
The International Sailing Federation is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the world governing body for the sport of sailing....
International Class in 1974. The 50th anniversary of the design of the dinghy was marked by the largest ever OK Dinghy World Championships held at Leba
Leba
Łeba is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland. It is located in the Middle Pomeranian region , near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the coast of the Baltic Sea.-History:...
on the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
coast in July 2007.
Biography
Olsen was born in 1919 in Præstø, Denmark. In 1939, he and his brother, Bjørn, formed a boatbuilding business and designed and built several boats until a shortage of boatbuilding material caused by World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
ended the business. In the early 1950s, he joined the Danish company, A. P. Botved, who were producing speedboats, and worked there until he started his own business in Bandholm in 1961. He designed and built a number of boats including the Bandholm 26, the Bianca 27 and the Great Dane 28, which were the first Danish boats to be built using fibreglass hulls, the Bandholm 20, Bandholm 30, the Mariboat and the Bandholm 24.
In 1956, Danish architect, Axel Damgaard Olsen, asked Olsen to create a design for a light, fast, single-handed sailing dinghy that could be built and sailed by amateurs.
The outcome was the 4.5 metres OK dinghy, which went on to be a classic design, became an ISAF International Class in 1974 and is still used in international competition. The 50th anniversary of the design of the OK dinghy was marked by the largest ever OK Dinghy World Championships held at Leba
Leba
Łeba is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland. It is located in the Middle Pomeranian region , near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the coast of the Baltic Sea.-History:...
on the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
coast in July 2007.
Knud Olsen died aged 90 on 31st August 2010 in his hometown Bandholm.
Sources
- Okdia: Knud Olsen
- OK Dinghy World Championships, Leba, Poland
- Sailworld.com: Largest ever OK Dinghy World Championships
- Welcome to the OK coral, Dansk Okjolle Klub
See also
OK DinghyOK (dinghy)
-History:In 1957 Axel Dangaard Olsen of Seattle, U.S.A., asked the Danish yacht designer Knud Olsen to prepare drawings for a light and fast single-handed sailing dinghy based on conventional plywood construction. The resulting design was named the O.K., using Knud Olsen's initials in reverse.The...