John Werket
American speed skater (1924-2010)
John Roland Werket (October 8, 1924, – June 4, 2010) was an American speed skater. He competed in seven events in total at the 1948, 1952 and 1956 Winter Olympics with the best achievement of sixth place in the 1500 m in 1948. In 1948, he also won the 1500 m event and a silver allround medal at the world championships. This was the best achievement for an American skater, surpassed only in 1977 by Eric Heiden. In 1950, Werket finished in third place allround, but won the 500 m and 1,500 m events. In 1952, he finished second in the 500 m and 1,500 m and tenth overall.
After graduating from Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis, he enlisted as paratrooper with the 101st Airborne Division and fought in World War II. He then graduated from Augsburg College in 1949. Werket was of Norwegian descent. While competing in Hamar, Norway, he met Vesla Bekkevoll, then aged 16, and married her on August 17, 1951 in Minneapolis. He retired from competitions after the 1952 World Championships and coached skating, first at the Richfield Skating Club, and then with the US national team, preparing it to the 1972 Winter Olympics.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “John Werket” as american speed skater (1924-2010). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as american speed skater (1924-2010). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2742221. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1924, 2010, 1948 and 1952.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “John Werket”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow John Werket primary sources, John Werket archive and John research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “John Werket”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “John Werket” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.