Australia At The 1956 Summer Olympics
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Australia At The 1956 Summer Olympics
Australia was the host nation for the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. However, due to Australian quarantine restrictions the equestrian events were held in Stockholm, Sweden. 294 competitors, 250 men and 44 women, took part in 140 events in 18 sports. Medalists Gold * Betty Cuthbert – athletics, women's 100 metres * Betty Cuthbert – athletics, women's 200 metres * Shirley Strickland – athletics, women's 80 m Hurdles * Norma Croker, Betty Cuthbert, Fleur Wenham, and Shirley Strickland – athletics, women's 4 × 100 m Relay * Joey Browne and Anthony Marchant — Cycling, men's 2000 m Tandem * Jon Henricks — Swimming, men's 100 m Freestyle * Murray Rose — Swimming, men's 400 m Freestyle * Murray Rose — Swimming, men's 1500 m Freestyle * David Theile — Swimming, men's 100 m Backstroke * John Devitt, Jon Henricks, Kevin O'Halloran, and Murray Rose — Swimming, men's 4 × 200 m Freestyle Relay * Dawn Fraser — Swimming, wo ...
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Australian Olympic Committee
Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Australians, indigenous peoples of Australia as identified and defined within Australian law * Australia (continent) ** Indigenous Australians * Australian English, the dialect of the English language spoken in Australia * Australian Aboriginal languages * ''The Australian'', a newspaper * Australiana, things of Australian origins Other uses * Australian (horse), a racehorse * Australian, British Columbia, an unincorporated community in Canada See also * The Australian (other) * Australia (other) Australia is a country in the Southern Hemisphere. Australia may also refer to: Places * Name of Australia relates the history of the term, as applied to various places. Oceania *Australia (continent), or Sahul, the landmasses ...
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John Devitt
John Thomas Devitt, AM (born 4 February 1937) is an Australian sprint freestyle swimmer of the 1950s and 1960s, who won a gold medal in the 100-metre freestyle at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. He won in controversial circumstances, being awarded the gold medal despite the timekeepers recording a slower time than the American silver medallist Lance Larson. He also claimed a gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, in the 4×200-metre freestyle relay. Background Growing up just from the Granville Olympic Pool, Devitt learnt to swim as part of the government-funded ''Learn to Swim'' program. He was educated first at Holy Family Primary School, The Trongate, Granville East, and later at Parramatta Marist High School in Parramatta. Both were Roman Catholic schools, where he also swum competitively for the school team. Devitt was initially trained by Tom Penny at the Clyde Swim Club, based at the Granville Pool, until it disbanded in 1947 and he moved to Manly ...
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John Scott (sailor)
John Malcolm Scott (29 September 1934 – 25 May 1993) was an Australian sailor. He won a silver medal in the Sharpie class with Rolly Tasker at the 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi .... References * 1934 births 1993 deaths Australian male sailors (sport) Olympic silver medalists for Australia Sailors at the 1956 Summer Olympics – 12 m2 Sharpie Olympic sailors for Australia Olympic medalists in sailing Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics 20th-century Australian people Place of birth missing {{Australia-yachtracing-bio-stub ...
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John Monckton (swimmer)
John James Monckton (28 October 1938 – 29 June 2017) was an Australian backstroke swimmer who won a silver medal in the 100-metre event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. Although he set multiple world records, he never won an Olympic gold medal.John Monckton
. sports-reference.com
An apprentice carpenter from the region of , Monckton appeared to be primed to win gold at the 1956 Olympics. At the national team camp in Townsville before the games, he became the first person to swim 400-metre backstroke in ...
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Stuart Mackenzie
Stuart Mackenzie (5 April 1936 - 20 October 2020) was an Australian rower. He was an Australian champion and Olympic medalist, who also competed for Great Britain at the 1962 World Championships. Club and state rowing Mackenzie was educated at The King's School in Sydney where he took up rowing. He matriculated in 1954. His senior club rowing was from the Sydney Rowing Club. International representative rowing Mackenzie won a silver medal in single sculls at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. He was reputed to have miscounted the distance, due to not realising the spacing of the buoys changed from 100 m to 50 m in the last 250 m of the race, and so stopped temporarily while still 100 metres from the finish. Mackenzie visited South Africa in 1958, and rowed on the Vaal River at Billabong, near Vereeniging. He took part in the SA Championships and won the double sculls event with his trainee, John Eden. At the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games he wo ...
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Chilla Porter
Charles Michael "Chilla" Porter (11 January 193615 August 2020) was an Australian athlete and political figure. He won a silver medal in the high jump at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. He later served as general secretary of the Liberal Party of Australia (Western Australian Division) from 1978 to 1987. Early life Porter was born in Brisbane, the son of Charles Robert Porter who was a Queensland state Liberal MP between 1966 and 1980 and served in the ministry of Joh Bjelke-Petersen. He was educated at the Anglican Church Grammar School. Athletics Porter was a high jumper who utilized the straddle technique, the dominant high jump technique before the Fosbury Flop emerged in the 1960s. At the age of 19, Porter competed for Australia in the high jump at the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia, finishing second and taking the silver medal with a leap height of 2.10m, more than 5 cm higher than his previous personal best. American Charles Dumas won th ...
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David Lean (athlete)
David Lean (''David Francis Lean;'' born 22 August 1935 in Tasmania) was an Australian athlete who competed mainly in the 440-yard hurdles and 4 × 440-yard relay. He competed for Australia at the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia in the 4 × 400 metre relay where he won the Silver medal with his team mates Graham Gipson, Leon Gregory and Kevan Gosper. He also regularly competed in the 440 yard hurdles, winning gold at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, silver at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, fifth at the Melbourne Olympic games and winning the Australian national championship in 1954. His gold medal at the 1954 Vancouver Games was only his eighth race over the distance and the first ever international victory by a Tasmanian athlete.Welch, Bruce (5 Aug 1954David Lean, Barbaris win gold medals; History made by Tas Athlete The Age Lean attended Launceston Grammar School where he mainly raced over 100 yards and later attended Mi ...
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Leon Gregory
Leon Stuart Gregory (born 23 November 1932) was an Australian athlete who competed mainly in the 400 metres. He competed for Australia in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia in the 4 × 400 metre relay where he won the Silver medal with his team mates Graham Gipson, David Lean and Kevan Gosper Richard Kevan Gosper, AO (born 19 December 1933) is an Australian former athlete who mainly competed in the 400 metres. He was formerly a Vice President of the International Olympic Committee, and combined Chairman and CEO of Shell Australia .... He won the national championship in 1951 and 1955. References 1932 births Living people Australian male sprinters Olympic silver medalists for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Australia Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Place of birth miss ...
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Kevan Gosper
Richard Kevan Gosper, AO (born 19 December 1933) is an Australian former athlete who mainly competed in the 400 metres. He was formerly a Vice President of the International Olympic Committee, and combined Chairman and CEO of Shell Australia. 1956 Summer Olympics Gosper competed for Australia in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia, where he won the silver medal in the 4 × 400 metre relay with his teammates Graham Gipson, Leon Gregory and David Lean. International Olympic Committee Gosper was nominated to the International Olympic Committee in 1977; was a vice president of the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG). He was chief of the IOC Press Commission, deputy chairman of the IOC Co-ordination Commission for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, chairman of Olympic Games Knowledge Services and president of the Oceania National Olympic Committees. He was inaugural chairman of the Australian Institute of Sport 1980–85, and president of th ...
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Graham Gipson
Graham Gipson (''Graham Chater Gipson;'' born 21 May 1932) was an Australian athlete who competed mainly in the 400 metres. He competed for Australia in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne in the 4 × 400 metre relay where he won the silver medal with his teammates Leon Gregory, David Lean and Kevan Gosper Richard Kevan Gosper, AO (born 19 December 1933) is an Australian former athlete who mainly competed in the 400 metres. He was formerly a Vice President of the International Olympic Committee, and combined Chairman and CEO of Shell Australia .... He also won the 440 yards at the 1953 National Championships and achieved five second places and third place in 110 yard, 220 yard and 440 yard races at National Championships between 1953 and 1958. References 1932 births Australian male sprinters Olympic silver medalists for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Australia Living people Medalists at the ...
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Sandra Morgan
Sandra Anne Morgan (born 6 June 1942), also known by her married name Sandra Beavis, or as Sandra Morgan-Beavis, is an Australian former freestyle swimmer who was part of the gold medal-winning team in the 4×100-metre freestyle relay at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. At the age of 14 years and 6 months, she became the youngest Australian to win an Olympic gold medal, a record that still stands. Morgan began serious training in early 1956 and won Olympic selection for the relay team as well as the 400-metre freestyle. Morgan's selection in the final quartet raised controversy because of her inexperience in top-level racing and her history of false starts. During the final, she lifted her head out of the water and saw her American opponent ahead of her, prompting her to regain the lead with a late burst in the third leg. Australia went on to win the relay in world record time. In her only individual event, Morgan came sixth in the 400-metre freestyle. In 1957, she wo ...
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Faith Leech
Faith Yvonne Leech (31 March 1941 – 14 September 2013) was an Australian freestyle swimmer who won a gold medal in the 4×100–metre freestyle relay and bronze in the 100-metre freestyle at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. A tall and lean swimmer known for her elegant technique, Leech started swimming as a child to build strength after a series of stomach disorders in her infancy. She quickly rose to prominence after breaking a string of age group records. In 1955, she became the youngest swimmer to win an Australian title, claiming victory in the 110-yard freestyle at the age of 13. She twice broke the Australian record in the 100-yard freestyle in late 1955, thereby positioning herself as a leading contender for Olympic selection in 1956. Leech's preparation was hindered by illness, which forced her out of the 1956 Australian Championships, but she recovered to gain Olympic selection in both the 100-metre freestyle and the corresponding relay. Leech produced a late ...
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