George Bernard Blake (4 September 1878 – 6 February 1946) was an Australian sportsman who competed in the

1906 Intercalated Games The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated in Athens, Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were referred to as the "Second International Olympic Games i ...

and

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were ori ...

as a long distance runner. He also played

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

with St Kilda and

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Biography

Blake, the son of Irish immigrants, had 10 siblings. One of them, Tom Blake, was also a league footballer and distance runner of note.Sports Reference: George Blake Biography and Olympic Results
Another,

Mick Blake Michael Patrick Blake (13 September 1874 – 2 January 1931) was an Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Biography Early life and family Blake was born in St Kilda, Victoria on 13 Septem ...

, also played in the VFL. In

1897 Events January–March * January 2 – The International Alpha Omicron Pi sorority is founded, in New York City. * January 4 – A British force is ambushed by Chief Ologbosere, son-in-law of the ruler. This leads to a puniti ...

, Blake made three appearances for St Kilda, in the inaugural VFL season. He played three more games in

1898 Events January–March * January 1 – New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York as the world's second largest. The city is geographically divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, B ...

and then, due to his running career, had to wait five years for his seventh and final league game with St Kilda. He returned for the

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...

to play one more game, this time at Carlton. A national record holder for the 10 miles, Blake was one of Australia's leading long distance runners of the early 1900s and was a member of the East Melbourne Harriers Athletic Club. He went to Auckland in 1901 for the Australasian Championships and finished second in the three miles, but was the first placed Australian. He was one of just four Australians to go to Athens in 1906 for the Olympics. His first event was the Men's 1,500 metres where he finished far back in his heat and missed the final. The longer distances were more to his liking and in the Men's five mile race he placed sixth out of 28 competitors. Blake's best performance of the 1906 Games was in the Men's

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

, where he was the only athlete from the southern hemisphere to compete. He was leading the race at the 24 km mark, by a distance of 1200 metres, but succumbed to cramp. Blake was still able to finish the race and finished sixth, in a time of three hours, nine minutes and thirty five seconds. He was involved in a sprint for the finish with Greece's Ioannis Alepous, who beat him to the line by ten seconds. His placing was not bettered by an Australian at an Olympic Games until Robert de Castella finished fifth in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

.Although considered to be at the time, the 1906 Games are no longer recognised by the IOC as being an "Olympic" Games. They are instead referred to as the

Intercalated Games The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated in Athens, Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were referred to as the "Second International Olympic Games i ...

, as they took place outside of the usual four year cycle. Blake made the long journey to Europe again two years later to participate in the London Olympics, this time competing for Australasia. He narrowly missed out on making the Men's Five Mile final after finishing third in his heat and only the top two qualified. In the marathon he couldn't repeats his performance from Athens and didn't finish the race. He could however feel aggrieved as his retirement after five and a half miles was due to an injury sustained when the bicycle riding attendant collided with him while giving out refreshments.'' The Argus''
"Britain's Marathon"
27 July 1908. P. 8

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, George 1878 births Australian rules footballers from Melbourne St Kilda Football Club players Carlton Football Club players Australian male long-distance runners Australian male marathon runners Olympic athletes of Australia Olympic athletes of Australasia Athletes (track and field) at the 1906 Intercalated Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Australian people of Irish descent 1946 deaths Athletes from Melbourne People from St Kilda, Victoria