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Norwegian Royals Visit Mayo Clinic

1,881 views · Published 15 October 2011 · 1:21 · Indexed 4 November 2026

Channel: Mayo Clinic · 2011 · Nonprofits & Activism

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Several hundred onlookers filled the Nathan Landow Atrium in the Gonda Building to welcome Their Majesties King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway as they made a stop at Mayo Clinic on Friday afternoon. Their Majesties were greeted by John Noseworthy, M.D., president and CEO of Mayo Clinic, Shirley Weis, CAO of Mayo Clinic, and Rochester Mayor Ardell Brede.  Two Mayo Clinic pediatric patients, 13-year-old Will Canan of Rochester and 10-year-old Hannah Keach of Zumbrota, presented The Queen with a bouquet of flowers before Their Majesties proceeded on an art passage and presentations by several Mayo Clinic specialists.

The crowd cheered and some were bursting with pride waving
 the Norwegian flag to show their support for the royal couple's visit. The visit  continues the relationship between Norway and Mayo Clinic, spanning more than  100 years and highlighted by the visit of Crown Prince Olav here in 1939.  The Crown Prince Olav visited on a goodwill trip to the United States on the eve of World War II; this was the first visit of European royalty to Mayo Clinic. The Norwegian foreign minister called this trip "a great handshake" from the people of Norway to the people of United  States.

Mayo has a long history of scientific collaboration with Norway. Many Norwegian physicians have trained at Mayo Clinic and Mayo researchers have joined Norwegian scientists to collaborate on clinical trials that have been published in many prestigious medical journals. Today several of those countrymen currently working at Mayo had the opportunity to meet Their Majesties to exchange a few words about their work.

This post was written by Kelley Luckstein and the video was recorded by David Coleman, who chronicled the sights and sounds of the visit, including Dr. Dr. Noseworthy's comments on Mayo Clinic's historic relationship with Norway and commitment to patient care.

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