Valentine Bialas was an American speed skater who competed in the 1924 Winter Olympics, in the 1928 Winter Olympics and in the 1932 Winter Olympics.
Education
In 1924 he finished sixth in the 5000 metres event and eighth in the 10000 metres competition. Four years later he finished sixth in the 1500 metres event as well as sixth in the 5000 metres competition, and 17th in the 500 metres competition. At the 1932 Olympics he finished fifth in the 10000 metres competition.
Career
He also started in the abandoned 10000 metres event. He qualified for the 1936 Olympic team as an alternate, but could not participate in those Olympics because he was injured in an auto/train collision which occurred in an icy downpour on the way home from a skating meet. He lost his leg in the collision.
Early morning skating sessions sometimes included shoveling snow off the frozen Barge Canal for a makeshift rink.
He was inducted into the Speed Skating Hall of Fame on May 11, 1963. The Val Bialas Ski Center is in Utica,New York and is named in his honor.