Launceston Elliot (9 June 1874 – 8 August 1930) was a Scottish

weightlifter Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lift ...

, and the first British Olympic champion.

Biography

Launceston Elliot was conceived in

Launceston, Tasmania Launceston () or () is a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia, at the confluence of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River (kanamaluka). As of 2021, Launceston has a population of 87,645. Material was copied ...

, Australia, after which he was named, but before his birth his family moved to India and he was born in Kaladagi and baptised at Guledgudd, now in Karnataka State. His family was an established part of the Scottish aristocracy with

Lord Minto Earl of Minto, in the County of Roxburgh, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1813 for Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 1st Baron Minto. The current earl is Gilbert Timothy George Lariston Elliot-Murray-Kynynm ...

being head of the family which had strong connections with India. The 4th Earl Minto served as

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

(1905–10). Launceston Elliot was the grandson of Sir Charles Elliot, the onetime governor of

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

, and his father Gilbert Wray Elliot served as magistrate with the Indian Civil Service. In 1887, Elliot's father gave up his post in India and took his family to England where he began farming in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

. The 13-year-old Launceston, an exceptionally well-built youth, who was seeing England for the first time, immediately came under the influence of the great

Eugen Sandow Eugen Sandow (born Friedrich Wilhelm Müller, ; 2 April 1867 – 14 October 1925) was a German bodybuilder and showman from Prussia. Born in Königsberg, Sandow became interested in bodybuilding at the age of ten during a visit to Italy. After a ...

and soon developed into an unusually talented lifter. In January 1891, aged only 16, he performed creditably at what is now recognised as the first British Championships held at the fashionable

Café Monico Café Monico was a restaurant on London's Shaftesbury Avenue. It was originally established in 1877 at 15 Tichborne Street in 1877 by the brothers Giacomo and Battista Monico. The first World Weightlifting Championships, then known as the Inter ...

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, ...

, London. Three years later he was the winner of the championships at the

Royal Aquarium The Royal Aquarium and Winter Garden was a place of amusement in Westminster, London. It opened in 1876, and the building was demolished in 1903. The attraction was located northwest of Westminster Abbey on Tothill Street. The building was design ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

Continuing success encouraged the 21-year-old Elliot to travel to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

for the first modern Olympic Games. At the time, there were no internationally accepted rules or classifications for weightlifting and the 1896 Olympics added further to the huge variety of classes contested on the contemporary scene. The two-handed lift came first on the program and, after a long drawn out contest,

Viggo Jensen Alexander Viggo Jensen (born 22 June 1874 in Copenhagen, Denmark; died 2 November 1930 in Copenhagen, Denmark) was a Danish weightlifter, sport shooter, gymnast, and athlete. He was the first Danish and Nordic Olympic champion, at the 1896 Summe ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

and Elliot had both lifted 111.5 kilograms, but Prince George awarded the Dane first place for having done so in better style. Jensen's lift was accomplished with a superb clean lift whereas Elliot had certainly encountered difficulty. By contrast, the one-handed event was a short, sharp event. Elliot declined Prince George's courteous offer of a rest break but he asked that he might this time lift after Jensen, as in the two-handed event the Dane had the advantage of lifting after Elliot. The request was granted although the order of lifting was not to have a material effect on the result. Elliot raised 71.0 kilograms without difficulty whereas Jensen, who had injured his shoulder trying to raise 112.5 kilograms in the two-handed event, could only manage 57.0 kilograms and Britain's first Olympic champion was crowned. Elliot also competed in the 100 metres in the athletics programme. He placed third in his heat and did not advance to the final. In the

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

event, Elliot was defeated in the first round by

Carl Schuhmann Carl August Berthold Schuhmann (12 May 1869 – 24 March 1946) was a German athlete who won four Olympic titles in gymnastics and sport wrestling, wrestling at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, becoming the most successful athlete at the in ...

of Germany, the gymnastics champion. He finished last of the five competitors in the rope climbing event on the gymnastics program. Following his victory in Athens, he set four new records at the 1899 Amateur Championships and, as a prominent figure on the British weightlifting scene, his financial success was virtually assured. He also competed at the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

, throwing the discus and placing eleventh (no weightlifting events were held that year). In 1903 he turned professional. After his retirement Elliot carried on farming in England for a few years before settling in Melbourne in 1923. He died of cancer of the spine on 8 August 1930 aged 56 and is buried in Melbourne's

Fawkner Cemetery Fawkner Memorial Park is located in the north-western Melbourne suburb of Fawkner, Victoria, Australia. It is the largest cemetery by land size in the state, and managed by Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust. Merlynston Creek, a tributary ...

. Photographs of Launceston Elliot are featured among the distinguished Scottish athletes in the sport section of the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...

, Edinburgh (re-opened after a major refurbishment in 2011).

References

External links

*
An article about Launceston Elliot by Ian Buchanan

Oxford DNB entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliot, Launceston 1874 births 1930 deaths People associated with physical culture People from Bagalkot district Scottish male weightlifters British male sport wrestlers Scottish male sprinters British male discus throwers Scottish male discus throwers Olympic athletes of Great Britain Olympic weightlifters of Great Britain Olympic wrestlers of Great Britain Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in weightlifting Athletes (track and field) at the 1896 Summer Olympics 19th-century sportsmen Athletes (track and field) at the 1900 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1896 Summer Olympics Weightlifters at the 1896 Summer Olympics Wrestlers at the 1896 Summer Olympics Scottish Olympic medallists Europeans in India Anglo-Scots Medalists at the 1896 Summer Olympics Deaths from spinal cancer Neurological disease deaths in Victoria (Australia) Deaths from cancer in Victoria (Australia)