Arthur Stanley Wint OD MBE (25 May 1920 – 19 October 1992) was a Jamaican

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

(RAF) pilot during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, sprinter, physician, and later High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. Competing at the 1948 and 1952 Olympics, whilst a medical student at

St Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by ...

, London, he won two gold and two silver medals, becoming the first

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n Olympic gold medalist.

Biography

Arthur Wint, known as the ''Gentle Giant'', was born in Plowden, Manchester, Jamaica. While at Calabar High School, he ran sprints and did both the high jump and long jump. He later transferred to Excelsior High School, where he finished his secondary education. In 1937 he was the Jamaica Boy Athlete of the year, and the following year won a gold medal in the 800 metres at the

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. In 1942 he joined the

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and set the Canadian 400-metre record while training there. He was sent to Great Britain for active combat during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as a pilot. He left the

in 1947 to study medicine at

, through the British further education and vocational training scheme for ex-servicemen. Wint won the British

AAA Championships The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the offi ...

titles in the 440 and 880 yards events at the 1946 AAA Championships. He would later win three more AAA titles. In the 1948 London Games, Wint won Jamaica's first Olympic gold medal for the 400 metres (46.2 seconds), beating his team-mate Herb McKenley. In the 800 metres he won silver, after American Mal Whitfield's gold. Wint missed a probable third medal when he pulled a muscle in the 4 × 400 metres

relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switc ...

final. In

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in 1952 he was part of the historic team setting the world record while capturing the gold in the 4 × 400 metres relay. He also won silver in the 800 metres, again coming second to Mal Whitfield. Wint ran his final race in 1953 at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

, finished his internship, and graduated as a doctor. The following year he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by

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in the 1954 New Year Honours.UK list: In 1955 Wint returned to Jamaica, eventually settling in

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as the only resident doctor in the parish. In 1973 he was awarded the Jamaica honour of the

Order of Distinction The Order of Distinction (OD) is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament (''The National Honours and Awards Ac ...

. He served as Jamaica's High Commissioner to Britain and ambassador to Sweden and Denmark from 1974 to 1978. He was inducted in the Black Athlete's Hall of Fame in the US (1977), the Jamaica Sports Hall of Fame (1989) and the Central American & Caribbean Athletic Confederation Hall of Fame (2003).

Death and legacy

Wint died on Heroes Day in Linstead, aged 72. His funeral was attended by hundreds of people, including the Jamaican Prime Minister.Arthur Wint
wintworks.com In 2012, a Blue Heritage Plaque was unveiled at 22 Philbeach Gardens in Earls Court, London, where he lived while studying medicine. At the same event, his daughter launched her book about him, titled ''The Longer Run''.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wint, Arthur 1920 births 1992 deaths Jamaican male sprinters Jamaican male middle-distance runners Jamaican general practitioners Alumni of the Medical College of St Bartholomew's Hospital Athletes from Manchester Parish High commissioners of Jamaica to the United Kingdom Ambassadors of Jamaica to Sweden Ambassadors of Jamaica to Denmark Members of the Order of the British Empire Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Officers of the Order of Distinction Olympic athletes for Jamaica Olympic gold medalists for Jamaica Olympic silver medalists for Jamaica Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1952 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Jamaica Competitors at the 1938 Central American and Caribbean Games Competitors at the 1946 Central American and Caribbean Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics People educated at Calabar High School 20th-century Jamaican sportsmen

Biography

Death and legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links