Bill Christian

William David "Bill" Christian (born January 29, 1938 in Warroad, Minnesota) is a retired American ice hockey player. He led the United States to a gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics. He was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984 and the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame in 1998.

Bill Christian
Personal information
Full nameWilliam David Christian
BornJanuary 29, 1938 (1938-01-29) (age 82)
Warroad, Minnesota, U.S.
Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
1960 Squaw Valley Ice hockey

Career

Christian played prep school hockey at Warroad High School where he led the team to the 1953 state tournament finals.[1] Christian then attended the University of Minnesota. However, since freshman were not allowed to join varsity sports teams at the time, Christian describes it as a “lost season.”[2] After one year at the University of Minnesota, Christian joined the United States National Team. He led the United States to a gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics.[3] During the Olympics, Christian led the team with seven goals and five assists as they became the first American team to play in the Soviet Union.[1]. After the Olympics, Christian had a brief professional tryout with the minor league Seattle Totems but chose to remain an amateur, returning to build houses in Minnesota instead.[4] He kept playing for the Warroad Lakers for 23 years before retiring after the 1980 season.[1] Four years later, in 1984, he was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.[1]

In 1998, Christian was inducted into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame as a player.[5]

In 2016, both Christian and his son Dave auctioned off their gold medals with Heritage Auctions.[6]

Personal life

Christian comes from a hockey playing family. Both Roger and Gordon Christian played for Team USA at the Olympic Games. His son, Dave Christian, was a member of the U.S. Olympic Hockey Team, at the 1980 Winter Olympics that also won a gold medal. His grandson, Brock Nelson, is a member of the New York Islanders of the NHL.[7]

The Christian brothers father was a carpenter. In 1964, Christian and his brother Roger began a wooden hockey stick business called "Christian Brothers Hockey Company." [8] The company was eventually bought out by Harrow in 2009.[9]

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References
  1. "WILLIAM "BILL" CHRISTIAN". ushockeyhalloffame.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  2. "Boyhood thrill". mnhockeyhub.com. September 24, 2011. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  3. "Bill Christian". legendsofhockey.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  4. "Squaw Valley Gold" (p.233) by James E. Coughlin,iUniverse Books, 2009 ISBN 978-0-595-20087-0 (pbk)
  5. "Complete list of IIHF Hall of Fame Inductees from 1997-2006". iihf.com. Archived from the original on March 19, 2006. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  6. "Bill and Dave Christian's Olympic hockey gold medals up for auction". ESPN.com. February 11, 2016. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  7. Wright, Cory (November 19, 2017). "The Golden Years". NHL.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  8. Sell, Dave (November 19, 1989). "Christian Family Sticks to Business That It Knows Best". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  9. Mike G. Morreale (February 10, 2014). "Minnesota town holds unique spot in Olympic history". NHL.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
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