Judith Brenda Grinham (born 5 March 1939), also known by her married name Judith Roe or also by her former married name Judith Rowley, is an English former competitive

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 Great Britain in the Olympics and European championships, and competed for England in the Commonwealth Games. Grinham is an Olympic gold medallist, Commonwealth and European champion, and former world record-holder. In 1956 and 1958 she was chosen as Great Britain's Sportswoman of the Year. In 1958 she became the first woman in any sport to hold/win Olympic, European and Commonwealth titles.

Early life

Grinham was born in the

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

suburb of

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

and grew up in Neasden. She studied at the Convent of Jesus & Mary, Harlesden, London NW10.

Personal life

She married Pat Rowley in Neasden in 1960, in St. Catherine's Church. They had two children, Keith (born in June 1961) and Alison (born in December 1962). In 1977 she divorced and remarried Michael Roe in 1979, (who had 4 children). She has five grandchildren and 5 step-grandchildren.

Career

Grinham competed in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, winning the 100-metre

backstroke Backstroke or back crawl is one of the four Swimming (sport), swimming styles used in competitive events regulated by FINA, and the only one of these styles swum on the back. This swimming style has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disa ...

, setting a world record of 1:12.9. She became the first Briton to win an Olympic swimming gold since Lucy Morton in 1924. Grinham competed in the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales, and won the 100-metre backstroke in 1:11.9. She went on to win a second gold medal as a member of the winning British team in the 4×100-metre medley team at the 1958 European Championships in Budapest, Hungary, and won an individual gold in the 100-metre backstroke. She became the first woman in any sport to hold Olympic, Commonwealth and European gold medals at the same time. She won the 1958 ASA National Championship 110 yards freestyle title, the 1957 ASA National Championship 220 yards freestyle title and the 110 yards backstroke title three times (1955, 1956, 1958). Grinham retired from competitions in 1959. The same year she appeared as a P.T. instructor in the Associated British Technicolor wartime service comedy film ''

Operation Bullshine ''Operation Bullshine'' is a 1959 British colour comedy film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Donald Sinden, Barbara Murray and Carole Lesley. The working title of the film was ''Girls in Arms'' that features as a marching song in the fil ...

'', alongside stars

Donald Sinden Sir Donald Alfred Sinden (9 October 1923 – 12 September 2014) was a British actor. Sinden featured in the film ''Mogambo'' (1953), and achieved early fame as a Rank Organisation film star in the 1950s in films including ''The Cruel Sea (195 ...

, Barbara Murray and

Carole Lesley Carole Lesley (27 May 1935 – 28 February 1974), was a British actress who had a short but significant career as a "blonde bombshell". She was born Maureen Rippingale in Chelmsford, Essex, but ran away from home at the age of 16, "aiming to ...

, but never made another film. Grinham was inducted into the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the s ...

as an "Honour Swimmer" in 1981. In 2007, she was appointed a Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(MBE) in the Queen's Birthday Honours list, 50 years after winning gold in Melbourne.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grinham, Judy 1939 births Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic swimmers of Great Britain Female backstroke swimmers Swimmers at the 1956 Summer Olympics English Olympic medallists Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for England Living people World record setters in swimming Members of the Order of the British Empire English female freestyle swimmers European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming English backstroke swimmers Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in swimming Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming Swimmers at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games

Early life

Personal life

Career

See also

References