Editing Canton, South Dakota (section)

==National Ski Tournament Site and Sioux Valley Ski Club==
A young man named Ludwig Hoiby, a student at Augustana and originally from Norway, gave a skiing exhibition to a group of Canton students in 1911. This exhibition began the quest to clear the hill at the Thorson farm located on the Iowa side of the Sioux River east of Canton. In 1923 the first meet sponsored by the Sioux Valley Ski Club was held at a new location several hundred yards east of the original hill. A 250-foot scaffold and an improved takeoff were built and the Central U.S. Tournament was held the following year. On February 11 and 12, 1925, the National Tournament was held and Canton was host to over 10,000 fans. World-renowned singer, [[Eric Bye]], presented the awards to the winners of several divisions. The winner of the "A" Division was awarded The Sioux Valley loving cup, a silver traveling trophy. Many notables were present that day including a member of the Olympic team, former national champions, and the international winner and the winner of the world distance title. Tournaments were held annually at the site and in 1930 the Club hosted the U.S. National Tournament a second time.  
In 1932 the U.S. Olympic Ski Jumping trials were held at the hill with Casper Oimoen winning the "A" Division. Three of the four qualifiers to the Olympics were members of the Sioux Valley Ski Club. Later that winter Oimoen would place 4th in the Olympics at Lake Placid, NY behind three Norwegian skiers. Snow was scarce in 1933 so it was trucked in 90 miles from Spirit Lake and Lake Okoboji, Iowa. By the time the snow was in place, it had turned into slush. Winds changed and brought bitter temperatures causing the slush to turn to ice so the tournament had to be cancelled. The largest crowd on record at the hill was in 1935 when the club hosted its third and final National Tournament. 15,000–20,000 people attended and out of town spectators stayed in Canton or Sioux Falls, SD hotels and in Pullman cars brought in by the railroad. The Sioux Valley Ski Club hosted its final Central U.S. Tournament in 1936. Poor attendance in 1936, cost increases and uncooperative weather prompted the club to fold the following year. Wind blew down the scaffolding in the 1940s, and in the 1960s the hill was used as a motorcycle climb. Today the site can be seen south of a South Dakota historic marker on U.S. Highway 18 two miles east of Canton.<ref>The Sioux Valley News, Canton, SD{{clarify|date=May 2019}}</ref><ref>The Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, SD{{clarify|date=May 2019}}</ref><ref>U.S. Ski Hall of Fame, Ishpeming, MI{{clarify|date=May 2019}}</ref>