Harry Ryan

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Start of the sprint finals at the World Track Championships in 1913. V. l. To the right: Christel Rode, William Bailey and Harry Ryan

Harry Edgar Ryan (born November 21, 1893 in St. Pancras , London , † April 14, 1961 in Ealing , London) was an English cyclist . At the Olympic Games in Antwerp in 1920 he won a gold and a bronze medal, 72 years before another Briton with Chris Boardman won a gold medal in cycling in 1992 and 80 years before a Briton with Jason Queally achieved a second gold and bronze medal at Olympic Games .

Harry Ryan was the youngest of five brothers, at least two of whom were into cycling at the Polytechnic Cycling Club , supported by father, George F. Ryan, a shopkeeper. From 1911 he successfully competed in important cycling races, and in 1912 he beat the 1908 world champion in sprint , Victor Johnson . In the same year he became a national 25 mile champion, his first British title out of a total of four. In 1913 Ryan started in Berlin at the World Railroad Championships in sprinting and was runner-up behind his compatriot William Bailey .

In 1914 Harry Ryan was drafted as a soldier for World War I and suffered a serious head injury from which he recovered. After the war, he started in 1919 at the Manchester Wheelers meet in front of 17,000 spectators and won three races that were considered national championships. At the Olympic Games in Antwerp in 1920 he started in two disciplines and won bronze in the sprint and gold in the tandem race , together with Thomas Lance . In the same year he was third among the amateurs at the Grand Prix de Paris .

In 1923 Ryan resigned from active cycling, but remained connected to the sport as a functionary, such as commissioner, delegate at the World Cycling Federation Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and team manager of the British team on various occasions.

literature

  • Paul Fraser: Harry Edgar Ryan - Olympic Gold Medalist . In: The Boneshaker , No. 186, Volume 19, Summer 2011, pp. 4-16

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personal data
SURNAME Ryan, Harry
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ryan, Harry Edgar (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English cyclist
DATE OF BIRTH November 21, 1893
PLACE OF BIRTH St. Pancras , London
DATE OF DEATH April 14, 1961
Place of death Ealing