Speed skaters at the 1960 Winter Olympics

Roald Edgar Aas (25 March 1928 – 18 February 2012) was a speed skater and cyclist from Norway. He was born in Oslo. Aas was the number two speed skater in Norway through the entire 1950s—initially after Hjalmar Andersen, later after Knut Johannesen. He became Norwegian champion once, in 1956, but finished second seven times.
Aas participated in all international championships between 1951 and 1960, almost always finishing in the top ten. He won bronze at the World Allround Speed Skating Championships in 1958, and at two European Speed Skating Championships, in 1957 and 1960. At the Oslo Winter Olympics, he won bronze on the 1500 m, while at the Squaw Valley Winter Olympics in 1960, he finally won gold, shared with Yevgeny Grishin, also in 1500 m.
Aas also was a successful cyclist, winning the 1956 Norwegian Championships in both road cycling and track cycling. For his achievements as both a speed skater and a cyclist, Aas was awarded the prestigious Egebergs Ærespris in 1956.
Until 1956, Aas represented Oslo Idrettslag (Oslo Sports Club) – from 1957 on, he represented Oslo Skøiteklub (Oslo Skating Club). When he ended his skating career, he became a coach at Oslo Skøiteklub.
After his retirement, he worked as a stock manager for Jordan Dental.

Richard Terrance McDermott (September 20, 1940 – May 20, 2023), nicknamed The Essexville Rocket, was an American gold and silver medal-winning Olympic speed skater.
McDermott was a surprise winner in the 500 m at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck when he beat the favorite in that distance, reigning Olympic champion Yevgeny Grishin, by half a second. His coach at the time was Leo Freisinger, the 500 m bronze medal winner of the 1936 Winter Olympics. McDermott's international career consisted exclusively of the 500 m at the Olympic Winter Games of 1960, 1964 and 1968. In 1968 he skated in unfavorable conditions, late in the day when the sun melted the ice. Yet he finished only 0.2 seconds behind the winner.McDermott was inducted in the National Speedskating Hall of Fame on June 4, 1977. At the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, McDermott took the Olympic Oath representing the judges.McDermott worked as a barber from 1963 to 1967, and after that as a manufacturer's representative in the Detroit area. In parallel he served as a speed skating official. On February 9, 1964, he was a guest on The Ed Sullivan Show, an appearance that was overshadowed by the first U.S. performance of The Beatles. He resided in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He was married to Virginia, and has five children and an elder sister Marilyn.McDermott died on May 20, 2023, at the age of 82.