Jules Noël (27 January 1903 – 19 May 1940) was a French athlete who competed in
discus and
shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
at two
European Athletics Championships and three
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
.
Biography
Jules Noël was born on 27 January 1903 in
Norrent-Fontes,
Pas-de-Calais
Pas-de-Calais (, " strait of Calais"; pcd, Pas-Calés; also nl, Nauw van Kales) is a department in northern France named after the French designation of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. It has the most communes of all the departments ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
[Jules Noël](_blank)
Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Accessed 30 October 2011. He joined the
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed For ...
and rose to the rank of Sergeant.
Career
After an impressive silver medal at the
Championnats de France d'athlétisme, a competition in which he would achieve 19 medals including 13 golds over the next 12 years,
[Dupuy, Gérard]
Les finalistes des championnats de France - 1888 à 1969
(The finals of the Championships of France - 1888 to 1969). 20 October 2011. Commission de la documentation et de l'histoire (Literature and History Commission). Accessed 30 October 2011. Noël was selected for the French Olympic discus team for the
1928 Games in
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 ...
. Though he finished some way off the medal positions he went on to break the French discus record in the trials 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 ...
, throwing 49.44 m.
He travelled to the Games in
Los Angeles, California
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' ...
and led out the team in the opening ceremony as the
French flag bearer.
[Ireland](_blank)
Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Accessed 30 October 2011. The French team convinced the U.S. officials that wine was an essential part of their competitors' diets, receiving special permission to circumvent the
prohibition in force across the country. Noël took full advantage of this and is reported as "swigging champagne with his compatriots" in the locker room between rounds at
the discus event. There was then further controversy when Noël finished in fourth place: the officials in charge of the event disallowed a throw that is believed to have been farther than gold medal winner
John Anderson John Anderson may refer to:
Business
*John Anderson (Scottish businessman) (1747–1820), Scottish merchant and founder of Fermoy, Ireland
* John Byers Anderson (1817–1897), American educator, military officer and railroad executive, mentor of ...
's 49.39 m attempt. The throw was not accepted because the officials did not see where it landed, their attention being drawn to the
pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...
ing competition instead. Noël was allowed an additional attempt but could not match his earlier performance, reaching 47.74 m and finishing fourth.
[Athletics at the 1932 Los Angeles Summer Games: Men's Discus Throw](_blank)
Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Accessed 30 October 2011.[Cousineau, Phil. "The Olympic odyssey: rekindling the true spirit of the great games". 2003. ''Quest Books''.] Anderson went on to improve his distance to 49.49 m, an Olympic record.
Noël went on to compete at the inaugural
European Athletics Championships in 1934 in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, finishing seventh in the discus and tenth in the shot put.
The
1936 Olympic Games were held in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
and Noël was again selected as the flag bearer for his country.
Noël returned to European competition at the
1938 Championships in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, again finishing seventh in the discus and improving to ninth in the shot put.
Death
Noël died during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
from a wound sustained during a battle outside
Escaudœuvres
Escaudœuvres () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
History
Escaudœuvres is famous for being the location of the sugar factory of the Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai. At the time of its construction, this was one of the b ...
near
Cambrai
Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noel, Jules
1903 births
1940 deaths
Sportspeople from Pas-de-Calais
Athletes from Hauts-de-France
French male discus throwers
French male shot putters
Olympic athletes for France
Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics
French Army soldiers
French Army personnel killed in World War II