Tom Richards (athlete)
Tom Richards (actually Thomas John Henry Richards; born March 15, 1910 in Upper Cwmbran , Wales , † January 19, 1985 in London ) was a British marathon runner who was successful in the 1940s and 1950s.
In 1939 he was fourth and in 1941 second in the Polytechnic Marathon .
In 1943 he finished second in the Polytechnic Marathon and won races in Dundee and Wolverhampton , in 1944 he won the Polytechnic Marathon and Wolverhampton. In 1945 he defended his title in the Polytechnic Marathon, in 1946 a fourth place in the "Poly" was followed by a third in the English championship.
In 1947 he was twice under 2:40 hours, second in the Polytechnic Marathon (2:37:30 h) and in Loughborough (2:36:07 h), where he was only beaten by Jack Holden .
The following year he qualified with a second place in the Polytechnic Marathon for the Olympic Games in London in 1948 , where a total of 41 runners were at the start. The 38-year-old Richards was in top form and only had to admit defeat to the Argentine Delfo Cabrera (gold in 2: 34: 51.6 h). In 2: 35: 07.6 hours he won the silver medal in front of the Belgian Étienne Gailly , who ran 26 seconds behind him.
In 1949 he was only beaten by Holden (who had given up at the Olympic marathon) in his two races: in Birmingham , where he ran in 2:38:08 h, and at the Enschede Marathon , where he went on one by more than two kilometers short distance of 2:24:04 h. A sixth place at the British Empire Games in Auckland in 1950 with a time of 2:42:11 h (nine and a half minutes behind the winner Holden) was followed by victory in the Welsh Championship in the same year.
In 1951 he was second in the English championship and third in Enschede, in 1952 he won a marathon in Port Talbot in 2:30:41, and in 1953 he was fourth in the Welsh championship. The following year, at the age of 44, he set his personal best on June 26th in the Polytechnic Marathon with 2:29:59 h. In 1955 he was again Welsh champion.
Tom Richards started for the South London Harriers. He was a nurse by profession.
Web links
- Tom Richards in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Richards, Tom |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Richards, Thomas John Henry (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British athlete |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 15, 1910 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Upper Cwmbran , Wales |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 19, 1985 |
| Place of death | London |