Alfred Joseph Watson (26 May 1907 – 23 August 1992) was an Australian

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete who competed in the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for ...

and in the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

Family life

The son of Thomas Watson (1866-1925), and Flora Henrietta Watson (1874-1950), née Dowell, Alfred Joseph Watson was born on 26 May 1907. His eldest brother, Russell Henry Watson (1892–1941), was an Australian amateur middle distance champion, who held titles in the mile, half-mile, and 440 hurdles. Both Alf and his older brother, Edward, attended

Caulfield Grammar School Caulfield Grammar School is a private, co-educational, Anglican, International Baccalaureate, day and boarding school, located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1881 as a boys' school, Caulfield Grammar began admitting girls exactly ...

from 1917 to 1919.

Early years

Alf then attended

Ivanhoe Grammar School Ivanhoe Grammar School is a private, co-educational, Anglican, day school, located in Ivanhoe (Buckley House and The Ridgeway Campus) and Doreen (Plenty Campus), both located in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Foun ...

, for whom he sprinted and competed in the high jump; In addition to being a fine Australian Rules footballer (a member of the school's First XVIII from 1922 to 1924), he also played cricket with the school's First XI from 1921 to 1924, captaining the team in 1923 and 1924, and winning the Associated Grammar Schools' batting average in 1924 (as a consequence of which he was awarded an "exhibitioner's ticket" to the

Melbourne Cricket Club The Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) is a sports club based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1838 and is one of the oldest sports clubs in Australia. The MCC is responsible for management and development of the Melbourne Cricket Groun ...

Competition

In 1928 he was eliminated in the first round of the 110 metre hurdles event as well as of the 400 metre hurdles competition. Watson finished second behind John Sheffield in the 440 yards hurdles event at the 1936 AAA Championships. One month later he was selected to represent

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

at the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, where he was eliminated in the first round of both the 110 metre hurdles contest and the 400 metre hurdles event. At the 1938 Empire Games he was a member of the Australian relay team which won the bronze medal in the 4×110 yards competition. In the 440 yards hurdles contest he finished fourth. He announced his retirement from competitive athletics in November 1938.1,500 Will Compete, ''The Argus'', (Friday, 4 November 1938), p.19.
/ref>

References

* *

External links

* * * *
Alfred 'Alf' Watson
at Australian Athletics Historical Results
Taylor, P., "These Days of Sport: Master of Style", ''The Argus'', (Saturday, 7 March 1936), p.26.

Hillhouse, A., "Story of Alf Watson: Brilliant Athlete for Twenty Years", ''The Junior Argus'', (Thursday, 26 March 1936), p.7.

Australia's Champions: A.J. Watson, ''The Sydney Morning Herald'', (Friday, 27 March 1936), p.15.

Olympic Hurdler's Success, ''The Argus'', (Monday, 23 November 1936), p.7.
an
Yates's Good Time for 100 Yards Run, ''The Argus'', (Monday, 23 November 1936), p.7.

Sports Flashes from Many Fields: Hurdles Champion, ''The Canberra Times'', (Monday, 13 September 1937), p.3.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Alf 1907 births 1992 deaths Australian male hurdlers Australian male sprinters Olympic athletes for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1938 British Empire Games People educated at Caulfield Grammar School People educated at Ivanhoe Grammar School Athletes from Melbourne Medallists at the 1938 British Empire Games Australian Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Australian sportsmen Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in athletics

Family life

Early years

Competition

See also

References

External links