Walter Beardsley Tewksbury (March 21, 1876 – April 24, 1968) was an American

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete. 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 ...

, he won five medals, including two golds.

Biography

Born in

Ashley, Pennsylvania Ashley is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, one mile (2 km) from Wilkes Barre. The population was 2,588 at the 2020 census. History Ashley was first settled in 1830. Forty years later, in 1870, it was incorporated as a borough. It wa ...

, Tewksbury studied for a dental degree at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, graduating in 1899. Running for the university team, he won the

IC4A IC4A Championships (Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America) is an annual men's competition held at different colleges every year. Association was established in 1875, the competition (started in 1876) served as the top level col ...

titles in the 110 and 220 y in 1898 and 1899. After graduating in 1899, he headed for Paris to compete in the Olympic Games. Tewksbury entered in 5 events, but had strong competition, among others from fellow Penn student

Alvin Kraenzlein Alvin Christian "Al" Kraenzlein (December 12, 1876 – January 6, 1928) was an American track-and-field athlete known as "the father of the modern hurdling technique". He was the first sportsman in the history of the Olympic games to win four ...

. In the 100 m, Tewksbury equalled the world record in the semi-finals, but placed second in the final to Frank Jarvis. The following day, he took another second place, behind Kraenzlein, in the 60 m, before entering the 400 m hurdles. At the time, this event had probably never been contested in the United States, but Tewksbury easily beat the local favourite for the 400 m hurdles title. The event was quite different from present day, as the hurdles were actually telephone poles laid over the track, and the final hurdles was a water barrier (like in the steeplechase). In the final of the 200 m hurdles, he placed third (with Kraenzlein the winner). The final of the 200 m was held a week later; in that race Tewksbury won his second individual Olympic gold, finishing immediately ahead of

Norman Pritchard Norman Gilbert Pritchard (23 June 1875 – 30 October 1929), also known by his stage name Norman Trevor, was a British-Indian athlete and actor who became the first Asian-born athlete to win an Olympic medal when he won two silver medals in ...

of India. Tewksbury retired from sports to open a dental practice in

Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania Tunkhannock is a borough in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, 31 miles (50 km) northwest of Wilkes-Barre. In the past, lumbering was carried on extensively. Today, many residents are employed by the Procter & Gamble plant in nearby Washington To ...

, in 1913. He died there on April 24, 1968.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tewksbury, John 1876 births 1968 deaths People from Ashley, Pennsylvania American male sprinters American male hurdlers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1900 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1900 Summer Olympics Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania Penn Quakers men's track and field athletes