Edward Russell Mockridge (18 July 1928 – 13 September 1958) was a racing

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

from Geelong,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Australia. He died during a race, in collision with a bus.

Family

The son of Robert Glover Mockridge and Aileen Claire Mockridge, née Riley, Edward Russell Mockridge (known as Russell) was born in Melbourne on 18 July 1928. Mockridge married Irene Pritchard (-2004), widely known as "Rene", in London, in 1953; they had a daughter, Melinda, who was born in Ghent, Belgium in December 1954.

Career

Mockridge started in 1946 by winning his first race of 40 km with Geelong Amateur Cycling Club. For his upper-class accent he was dubbed ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'', but his wins soon earned him the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

of ''The Geelong Flyer''. He became described as 'Australia's greatest all-round cyclist for all time'. His ride in the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

road race in London was ruined by two punctures and his team was eliminated in the quarter-final of the 4000 m team pursuit. He represented Australia at the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

. He took gold in the 1000 m sprint and the 1000m time trial, and silver in the 4000 m pursuit. In Paris in July 1952 he won the Amateur Grand Prix and the following day the Open Grand Prix, beating world professional champion

Reg Harris Reginald Hargreaves Harris OBE (1 March 1920 – 22 June 1992) was a British track racing cyclist in the 1940s and 1950s. He won the world amateur sprint title in 1947, two Olympic silver medals in 1948, and the professional title in 19 ...

, becoming first to win both amateur and professional Paris Sprints. His humiliation of the professionals led to amateur riders being barred for many years. Later that year he won Manchester Wheelers' Club Muratti Cup again beating

. Selection for the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

was in doubt as he refused to sign the Australian Olympic Federation fidelity bond, which demanded he remain amateur for two years after the Games. A great former cyclist,

Hubert Opperman Sir Hubert Ferdinand Opperman, OBE (29 May 1904 – 18 April 1996), referred to as Oppy by Australian and French crowds, was an Australian cyclist and politician, whose endurance cycling feats in the 1920s and 1930s earned him international acc ...

, then Federal parliamentarian for Geelong, negotiated a reduction to one year. Mockridge won gold medals in the tandem event with Lionel Cox, and in the 1000 m time trial. He turned professional a year later with success in Europe and Australia. He teamed with

Sid Patterson Sydney Patterson (also known as Sid Patterson, 14 August 1927 – 29 November 1999) was a world champion amateur and professional track cyclist from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. While a teenager, Patterson won every Victorian and Australi ...

and

Reginald Arnold Reginald Athelstane Arnold (9 October 1924 – 23 July 2017) was an Australian racing cyclist. Arnold's cycling career began in 1941, when his brothers gave him a bicycle for his birthday. Despite being blind in one eye, Arnold joined Ashfield ...

to win the Paris six-day race in 1955. Mockridge was one of 60 of 150 entrants to finish the 1955 Tour de France. He won 12 consecutive Australian championships. He won the Australian national road race title in 1956, 1957 and 1958.

Death

In 1958, aged 30, he was killed by a bus in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

at the Dandenong Rd and Clayton Rd intersection, two miles from the start of the 225 km Tour of Gippsland race.There was a court case: se
Taylor, Jim, "How it Feels to Be Hit by a Bus", ''The Age'', Wednesday, 19 January 2005.
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Recognition

*In 2015, he was an inaugural Cycling Australia Hall of Fame inductee.

References

External links