Natalie Alwyne Steward (born 30 April 1943) is a former British Olympic swimmer.

Swimming career

Although Steward was born in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, her family would later move to

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in southern Africa, south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-West ...

, for whom she would compete for at the

1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games (Welsh: Gemau Ymerodraeth Prydain a'r Gymanwlad 1958) were held in Cardiff, Wales, from 18–26 July 1958. Thirty-five nations sent a total of 1,130 athletes and 228 officials to the Cardiff Games ...

. Steward was just 13 years old when she competed in her first Rhodesian Championships in 1956, where she won three events, he international debut happened later that year in the Durban Currie Cup, the following year she would break 23 Rhodesian senior and junior records, after the

, her family moved to

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed ...

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 ...

, which allowed to compete for the Great Britain Team. Steward represented Great Britain at the

1960 Olympic Games The 1960 Olympics may refer to: *The 1960 Winter Olympics, which were held in Squaw Valley, United States *The 1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympi ...

in Rome, Italy in four events: she won the bronze medal in the 100 m freestyle in a time of 1:03.1, and the silver medal in the 100 m backstroke in 1:10.8. She was also a member of both the 4×100 m freestyle and 4×100 m medley relay teams, finishing fifth in both events. Following the 1960 Summer Olympics, in September while competing at the

British Swimming Championships The British Swimming Championships are an annual event organised by British Swimming (the governing body of swimming in the United Kingdom). History The event is usually held in March or April each year in a long course (50 m) swimming poo ...

, she broke the World Record for the women's 110 yards backstroke swimming it in 71 seconds. She was the ASA National British champion over 110 yards freestyle, 220 yards freestyle and 440 yards freestyle in 1959 and 1960 British Champion over 110 yards freestyle, 220 yards freestyle and the 110 yards backstroke. In 1962 Steward aged just 18 years old retired and returned to Rhodesia to become a professional swimming coach.

References

External links

British Olympic Association athlete profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steward, Natalie 1943 births Living people Sportspeople from Pretoria Olympic swimmers for Great Britain Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain Swimmers at the 1960 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists in swimming British female freestyle swimmers British female backstroke swimmers Medalists at the 1960 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for England

Swimming career

See also

References

External links