Henry Alfred "Jackie" Gibson (31 March 1914 – 15 January 1944) was a South African long-distance runner. He finished eighth in the

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 ...

at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

. At the 1938 Empire Games he won the bronze medal in the marathon and placed sixth in the 6 miles contest. Gibson served in the

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

where he reached the rank of Lieutenant in the 25 Squadron. He died along with the rest of the crew in an aircraft accident when their Lockheed B-34 Ventura II #6026 flew into a hilltop near

Eshowe Eshowe is the oldest town of European settlement in Zululand, historically also known as Eziqwaqweni, Ekowe or kwaMondi. Eshowe's name is said to be inspired by the sound of wind blowing through the more than 4 km² of the indigenous Dlinza ...

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ...

during bad weather. He was buried in the Stellawood Cemetery in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

. In commemoration of his success in athletics, the Jackie Gibson Memorial Marathon was inaugurated in 1946 and is the oldest marathon in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

References

1914 births 1944 deaths Athletes from Johannesburg South African male marathon runners South African male long-distance runners Olympic athletes for South Africa Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1938 British Empire Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for South Africa Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in South Africa South African Air Force personnel of World War II South African military personnel killed in World War II South African Air Force officers Medallists at the 1938 British Empire Games {{SouthAfrica-athletics-bio-stub