Billy Cole (born 10 February 1965) is a male British former

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete who specialised in the

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

. His personal best for the event was . His sole major achievement was a gold medal at the

1986 Commonwealth Games The 1986 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a 'Cho-fhlaitheis 1986) were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 24 July and 2 August 1986. They were the second Games to be held in Edinburgh. Thirty two of the eligible fifty nine countries (largel ...

. He also won three UK Championships and four AAA titles (two outdoor, two indoor)

Career

Cole began competing in the shot put at an early age and took part in international competition, winning the 1981 title for England at the British International Schools Match and a bronze at the 1982 Gymnasiade behind compatriot Chris Ellis. Nationally, he rose through the ranks at the

English Schools Championships English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, winning the under-15s title in 1979 and then the under-20 title in 1982. As a member of the

Newham and Essex Beagles Newham and Essex Beagles Athletic Club is an athletics club in southeast England. The club competes in the British Athletics League and Southern League along with the National Junior League and Youth Development League for competitors under the a ...

athletics club,Billy Cole
Power of 10. Retrieved on 2015-03-26. he took part in the junior

AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Airports * Anaa Airport in French Polynesia (IATA airport code AAA) * Logan County Airport (Illinois) (FAA airport code AAA) Arts, entertainment, and me ...

championships. He won the 1980 under-17s AAA indoor title and then repeated that victory the following year with a championship record of . Once he reached the full junior category competitions, he had similar success: he won the 1982 indoor title then set a championship record of to win in 1984. He had three straight wins at the AAA Junior Outdoor Championships from 1982 to 1984, including championship records of and . He began to make his impact at the senior level in 1983, starting at the national level. He third at the

AAA Indoor Championships The AAA Indoor Championships was an annual indoor track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost indoor domestic athletics event during its lifetime. The event was first held in 1935, fol ...

then was runner-up at the

UK Athletics Championships The UK Athletics Championships was an annual national championship in track and field for the United Kingdom, organised by the British Athletics Federation. The event incorporated the 1980 Olympic trials for the British Olympic team. The venue f ...

that year behind Nick Tabor. The year after he rose to second at the AAA Indoors (behind Mike Winch) and won his first national title at the UK Championships. He broke Winch's six-year undefeated streak at the 1985 AAA Indoors, although his winning mark of was the shortest in fifteen years. He defended his UK title and added the

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 officia ...

crown to that, though again his victory in was a low not reached since 1968.UK Championships
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-03-26.
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-03-26.
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-03-26. The 1986 season was the peak of Cole's career. The 21-year-old had a triple victory at national level by winning the AAA Indoors in , a third straight UK Championships title in , and a second AAA Championships title with a lifetime best of . These marks were his best performances ever at those competitions. His personal best moved him up to fifth on the all-time United Kingdom lists behind Geoff Capes, Mike Winch,

Arthur Rowe Arthur Sydney Rowe (1 September 1906 – 5 November 1993) was an English footballer, and later manager, who played as a centre half. He was the first manager to lead Tottenham Hotspur to the First Division Championship title in 1951. He also "i ...

and

Bill Tancred William Raymond Tancred (born 6 August 1942) is a leading sports administrator, academic and former international athlete. He competed at the 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics in the discus and won a bronze and silver medals in successive Commonwe ...

. His achievements that year brought him his first and only senior selection for England at the

held in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. The standard of throwing at that tournament was much lower than it had been in the preceding years, and Cole won the gold medal with a throw of – the shortest winning throw for 24 years.Commonwealth Games: Men’s shot put
''

Athletics Weekly ''AW'' (formerly ''Athletics Weekly'') is a monthly track and field magazine published in the United Kingdom by Athletics Weekly Limited. The magazine covers news, results, fixtures, coaching and product advice for all aspects of track and field, ...

'' (2014-07-24). Retrieved on 2015-03-26. Despite his Commonwealth title coming at such an early stage of his career, he did not compete at a high level of the sport after that.

International competitions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Billy Living people 1965 births British male shot putters English male shot putters Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1986 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1986 Commonwealth Games