Summer Olympian

Click here for the Lead Stories

Olympian Wins Medal 73 Years After His Death

Posted January 11, 2008 at 12:03 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: Events, Track & Field, Other

Australian middle-distance runner Edwin “Teddy” Flack won the first 800m run and the 1500m run at the inaugural 1896 Olympic Games which were held in Athens, Greece. The 21-year-old won the 800m in a time of 2:11.0 and the 1500m in 4:33.2. He ran the marathon, but collapsed with 4km to go. He also competed in singles and doubles tennis, losing a semi-final match along with teammate George S. Robertson of England. Since bronze medals weren’t awarded in 1896, and since the teammates represented different countries, somehow their 3rd place finish went unnoticed for more than a century.

Now, sport historian John McPherson has successfully lobbied to have Flack’s bronze medal included by the Australian Olympic Committee in its tally of Australian medals. More than 73 years after Flack’s death, he has become the only Australian to win medals in two sports.

A story like this warms the heart of this amateur sport historian and statistician. I wonder how many other stories like this are waiting to be discovered?

Sources: [Sydney Morning Herald][Wikipedia]

2 comments, add yours | Permalink | Share this article

Tags: 1500, 800m, athens 1896, australia, bronze medal, doubles-tennis, edwin flack, gold medal, olympics, sports historian, sports history

Like what you see? Subscribe to our feed!

2 Responses to “Olympian Wins Medal 73 Years After His Death” (Leave a reply)