John Edward London (13 January 1905 – 2 May 1966) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

athlete who competed mainly in the 100 metres. Born in

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...

, now

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

, he won a silver and a bronze medal at the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. He moved to London as a child. At some point his family moved back to British Guiana, where London attended Queen's College in Georgetown. Back in England, London studied at the

Regent Street Polytechnic The University of Westminster is a public university, public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first Polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic to open in London. The Polyte ...

, where he joined the

Polytechnic Harriers The Polytechnic Harriers is an athletic club with long ties to what is now the London Marathon. In 1908 they oversaw the opening and closing ceremonies for the 1908 Olympics, the Game's marathon, and played a large part in the development of the P ...

and was coached by

Sam Mussabini Scipio Africanus "Sam" Mussabini (6 August 1867 – 12 March 1927) was an English athletics coach best known for his work with Harold Abrahams. In total, he led athletes to eleven medals over five Olympic Games. However, in an era where amateuri ...

. He was elected captain of the sports club in October 1922. He was an early adopter of

starting blocks Starting blocks are a device used in the sport of track and field by sprint athletes to brace their feet against at the start of a race so they do not slip as they stride forward at the sound of the starter's pistol. The blocks also enable the sp ...

rather than digging footholds in the cinder tracks. He ran the 100 metres in 10.7 seconds to win the race at a competition between England and France at

Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to: * Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England ** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066 * Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge * Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...

in July 1927, and then won both the 100 metres and the 200 metres at a competition in Paris in October 1927. London competed for Great Britain in the

held in

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. After equalling the Olympic 100 metres record of 10.6 seconds in the semi-final, he won the silver medal in the 100 metres final, behind Canadian Percy Williams. He then won the bronze medal in the 4×100 metres relay with his teammates Cyril Gill,

Edward Smouha Edward Ralph Smouha (17 December 1908 – 1 April 1992) was a British track and field athlete who competed mainly in the 100 metres. Edward Smouha was born at Chorlton-cum-Hardy, one of the nine children of Rosa Ades and Joseph Smouha. His fat ...

and

Walter Rangeley Walter Rangeley (14 December 1903 – 16 March 1982) was an English athlete who competed mainly in the sprints. He was born in Salford and died in Glyndŵr. Rangeley competed for Great Britain in the 1924 Summer Olympics held in Paris, F ...

, behind the teams of the US and Germany. He was the first to use starting blocks at the Olympic Games. He was awarded the Polytechnic Harriers's S. A. Mussabini memorial medal (Mussabini having died in 1927) and the Studd Trophy in 1928. He was later coached by Albert Hill. In July 1929, he became the first British sprinter to win the

Amateur Athletic Association The Amateur Athletic Association of England or AAA (pronounced 'three As') is the oldest national governing body for athletics in the world, having been established on 24 April 1880. Historically it effectively oversaw athletics throughout Britai ...

's 100 yards title since Harold Abrahams in 1924. He was also a leading British

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

er in this period. His athletic career was curtailed by a leg injury in 1930. He joined a 4×100 metre relay for England against Germany in 1931, but was not selected for the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. After he retired from athletics, he became an entertainer, playing piano in the original cast of the

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

's musical ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass trail ride by a company of riders. The focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display. Often, the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. Often, a cava ...

'' at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...

in 1931. He also appeared in

Will Hay William Thomson Hay (6 December 1888 – 18 April 1949) was an English comedian who wrote and acted in a schoolmaster sketch that later transferred to the screen, where he also played other authority figures with comic failings. His film '' O ...

Gainsborough Pictures Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, north London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The com ...

comedy ''

Old Bones of the River ''Old Bones of the River'' is a comedy film released in 1938 starring British actor Will Hay with Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt and directed by Marcel Varnel, based on the characters created by Edgar Wallace. The film is a spoof of the 1935 m ...

'' in 1938. He married at Marylebone register office in 1930, where his profession was recorded as "pianist". He was later divorced and remarried in 1938. With athletics journalist Joe Binks, he co-wrote an athletics coaching manual in 1948, ''The Way to Win on Track and Field'', but the book was not a commercial success. He later worked as a porter at

St Pancras Hospital St Pancras Hospital is part of the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust in St Pancras, London, St Pancras area of Central London, near Camden Town. The hospital specialises in Geriatrics, geriatric and Psychiatry, psychiatric medicine. His ...

, and died suddenly from a

subarachnoid haemorrhage Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is bleeding Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural openi ...

References

External links

London
at the 1928 Olympics
London
at the 1928 Olympics
London
at the 1928 Olympics {{DEFAULTSORT:London, Jack 1905 births 1966 deaths Sportspeople from Georgetown, Guyana Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics English male sprinters Olympic athletes of Great Britain Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain British Guiana people Guyanese emigrants to England Guyanese male sprinters Medalists at the 1928 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Alumni of Queen's College, Guyana Alumni of the Regent Street Polytechnic Afro-Guyanese people Black British sportspeople 20th-century Guyanese male actors British male film actors Black British male actors Guyanese emigrants to the United Kingdom

References

Further reading

External links