Jack Lovelock
John Edward "Jack" Lovelock
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John Edward "Jack" Lovelock (
January 5,
1910 –
December 28,
1949) was a
New Zealand athlete, and a
1936 Olympic champion.
Born in the town of
Crushington (near
Reefton) as the son of
English immigrants, Lovelock showed talent for sports while at high school. He studied medicine at the
University of Otago, while competing for the university team in the New Zealand 1-mile championships. In 1931 he became a
Rhodes Scholar at
Exeter College,
Oxford.
In 1932 - by then holder of the British Empire record for the mile - Lovelock competed in the
1932 Summer Olympics in
Los Angeles. There, he placed 7th in the final. The following year, he set a new
world record in the mile: 4:07.6, and in 1934 he won the gold medal in the mile at the
British Empire Games.
The highlight of Lovelock's career came in 1936, when he won the gold medal in the 1500 m at the
Berlin Olympics, setting a new world record in the final (3:47.8). Converting his time to the mile, it seemed that a four-minute mile might be within reach of runners after all.
After his title, Lovelock graduated and became a doctor, serving as a medical officer during
World War II. He was tragically killed when he fell under a subway train in
New York.
Lovelock: New Zealand's Olympic gold miler by Christopher Tobin, Dunedin, 1984
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Extensive biography from the Dictionary of New Zealand
