Edward Leonard Graham Hughes (23 February 1916 – 14 January 2013) was a New Zealand racing cyclist. Born in the

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

suburb of Morningside on 23 February 1916, Hughes was the son of Florence Ethel Hughes (née Graham) and Alfred John Hughes. By 1932, he was racing as junior member of the Manukau Amateur Cycling Club, before moving to the Lynndale Amateur Cycling Club the following year. Hughes won the combined Auckland provincial and North Island 100-miles road race championship in October 1936, beating Ronald Triner by three seconds in a time of 4:53:08. Three weeks later, in the national road race championship, Hughes retired in the later stages due to cramp. At the 1937 national amateur track cycling championships, held at

Western Springs Stadium Western Springs Stadium is a stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. Built within a natural amphitheatre, it is primarily used for rugby union matches during the winter and for speedway during the summer. It is also occasionally used for large concer ...

in Auckland, Hughes was runner-up in the paced 10-mile event. In October 1937, Hughes won the national amateur 100-miles road race title raced in Canterbury, recording a time of 4:37:17 to beat Ronald Triner in a sprint finish. The race was also the first trial for selection for the New Zealand team for the

1938 British Empire Games The 1938 British Empire Games was the third British Empire Games, the event that evolved to become the Commonwealth Games. Held in Sydney, Australia from 5–12 February 1938, they were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary (150 ye ...

; the second trial was a 100 km race in North Canterbury two days later, in which Hughes punctured; and he was not one of the three cyclists selected for the Games road race team. Later the same month, he recorded the third-fastest time in the annual Palmerston North to Wellington amateur road race, which doubled as the North Island amateur road race championship. After missing selection for the road race at the 1938 British Empire Games, Hughes contested the trials for the New Zealand track cycling team. After the first trials in Auckland in December 1937, he was provisionally named in the team to compete in the 1 km time trial and the 10-mile track race. However, after the second trials in Christchurch the next month, he was controversially omitted from the New Zealand team. Hughes finished third in the 1938 national amateur road race championship, and was unplaced in the same event in 1939. At the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

, Hughes placed eighth in the 1 km time trial with a time of 1:17.1. Hughes died on 14 January 2013, and was buried at Waikumete Cemetery, Auckland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Graham 1916 births 2013 deaths Cyclists from Auckland New Zealand male cyclists Commonwealth Games competitors for New Zealand Cyclists at the 1950 British Empire Games Burials at Waikumete Cemetery 20th-century New Zealand people