Hjalmar Johansen

Fredrik Hjalmar Johansen was born on May 15, 1867, in Skien. An elite gymnast who won national championship honors, he volunteered as a stoker aboard the Fram in 1893 to join Fridtjof Nansen's expedition.

In 1895, Nansen selected Johansen as his sole companion for an audacious trek toward the North Pole on dog sledges and kayaks, setting a new record of 86°14'N before enduring a harrowing winter in a stone hut on Franz Josef Land subsisting on polar bear meat. In 1910, Johansen joined Roald Amundsen's South Pole expedition; despite falling out with Amundsen during an abortive early start, his heroic rescue of Kristian Prestrud saved his comrade's life.