Spenceley Noel Stanley Crump (18 December 1916 – 25 October 1995) was a New Zealand

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * ICD Freestyle, a paintball marker * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott La ...

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

who represented his country at the

1934 British Empire Games The 1934 British Empire Games were the second edition of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, held in England, from 4–11 August 1934. The host city was London, with the main venue at Wembley Park, although the track cycling events wer ...

, where he won a bronze medal, and at the

1938 British Empire Games The 1938 British Empire Games was the third British Empire Games, the event that evolved to become the Commonwealth Games. Held in Sydney, Australia from 5–12 February 1938, they were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary (150 ye ...

Early life and family

Born in the

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

suburb of Ponsonby on 18 December 1916, Crump was the son of William Arthur Harry Crump and Ellen Spenceley Crump (née Walker). He was educated at

Takapuna Grammar School Takapuna Grammar School is a state coeducational secondary school located in the suburb of Belmont on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. Established in 1927, the school mainly serves the eponymous suburb of Takapuna and the entire Devo ...

, where he was the senior swimming champion in 1933, and was a member of the North Shore Amateur Swimming and Lifesaving Club. In July 1943, Crump married Eileen Hilda Wallace, a theatre sister at

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

Public Hospital, at Trinity Presbyterian Church,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

Swimming

At the 1934 New Zealand national swimming championships, Crump won both the 100 yards and 220 yards men's freestyle titles. He was then selected to represent New Zealand at the

in London, where he won the bronze medal in the men's 100 yards freestyle, and was also a member of the New Zealand team that finished fifth in the 3x110yards medley relay. Four years later, he again competed at the

British Empire Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

, this time in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, where he did not progress beyond the heats of the men's 110 yards and 440 yards freestyle events.

Later life and death

A bank officer, Crump served with the

2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

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 ...

. He embarked as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

with the first echelon, and saw active service in Greece, Crete, Egypt, and Libya, before being invalided home in mid 1942. Promoted to the rank of captain, he then served as adjutant at the Raventhorpe Convalescent Depot in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

. Crump died on 25 October 1995, and his body was cremated at the

Karori Crematorium The Karori Crematorium and its adjacent chapel are located in Karori Cemetery in the Wellington suburb of Karori. The crematorium was the first such facility in New Zealand, and it opened in 1909. The Karori Crematorium and chapel are registered b ...

in Wellington.

Legacy

Crump's swimming costume and bronze medal from the 1934 British Empire Games are held in the collection of the

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crump, Noel 1916 births 1995 deaths Swimmers from Auckland People educated at Takapuna Grammar School New Zealand male freestyle swimmers Swimmers at the 1934 British Empire Games Swimmers at the 1938 British Empire Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for New Zealand Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming New Zealand military personnel of World War II Medallists at the 1934 British Empire Games

Early life and family

Swimming

Later life and death

Legacy

See also

References