Thomas Sydney Battersby (18 November 1887 – 3 September 1974) was an English competition

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 freestyle events at two consecutive Olympic Games. At the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were ori ...

hosted by London, he won a silver medal in the men's 1500-metre freestyle, finishing second with a time of 22:51.2, behind fellow Briton Henry Taylor (22:48.4), and ahead of Australian

Frank Beaurepaire Sir Francis Joseph Edmund Beaurepaire (13 May 1891 – 29 May 1956) was an Australian distance freestyle swimmer from the 1900s to the 1920s, who won three silver and three bronze medals, from the 1908 Summer Olympics in London to the ...

(22:56.2). He also advanced to the semifinals in the 400-metre freestyle. Four years later at the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...

in Stockholm, Sweden, Battersby won a bronze medal as a member of the third-place British men's team in the 4×200-metre relay. He also reached the semifinals of the 400-metre freestyle and 1500-metre freestyle. During the course of his competitive swimming career, Battersby set four world records in freestyle events, including the 400-metre, 330-yard, 440-yard and one-mile distances. Battersby had a reputation for physical toughness; at the 1908 Olympics, he continued to swim at the end of the 1500-metre event – a shorter distance than the imperial mile – in an attempt to break the world record for the mile freestyle. He fell short of breaking the world record, but did set a new British national mark.David Prentice,
Merseyside's 100 Olympians: No. 43 Thomas Sydney Battersby
, ''The Liverpool Echo'' (14 June 2012). Retrieved 19 May 2015. He was born in

Platt Bridge Platt Bridge, colloquially known as Platt Wazz, is a settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, south of Wigan town centre along the spine of the A573 road. Historically part of the Hindley Urban District, i ...

, near

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, England, and died 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 ...

, New South Wales, Australia. He was posthumously 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 stu ...

as an "Honor Swimmer" in 2007.

References

External links

British Olympic Association profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battersby, Sydney 1887 births 1974 deaths English male freestyle swimmers World record setters in swimming Olympic bronze medalists in swimming Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Olympic swimmers of Great Britain Sportspeople from Wigan People from Wigan Swimmers at the 1908 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1912 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1912 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in swimming

See also

References

External links