Dave Stephens (11 November 1928 – 5 November 2024) was an Australian

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

and local identity in

Carlton, Victoria Carlton is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, three kilometres north of the Melbourne central business district within the city of Melbourne local government area. Carlton recorded a population of 16,055 at the 2021 census. ...

who competed in the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December ...

. Stephens was known during his career as The Flying Milkman for his milk delivery round in West Footscray.

Early career

Stephens attended Williamstown High School, and while in first form in 1941 he failed to qualify for his house sports team. After dedicating himself to track events, he became school champion in four years. Still largely unknown in 1953, Stephens competed in the athletics competition of the

4th World Festival of Youth and Students The 4th World Festival of Youth and Students (WFYS) was held from 2 to 16 August 1953 in Bucharest, capital city of the then Romanian People's Republic. The World Federation of Democratic Youth organized this festival against a background of wh ...

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, Romania, aiming to meet and learn the training regime of

Emil Zatopek Emil may refer to: Literature *''Emil and the Detectives'' (1929), a children's novel *"Emil", nickname of the Kurt Maschler Award for integrated text and illustration (1982–1999) *''Emil i Lönneberga'', a series of children's novels by Astr ...

. The two formed a friendship, and Stephens trained with Zatopek for several days in

Prague, Czechoslovakia Prague ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan area is home to approximately 2.3 mi ...

before returning to Melbourne. He continued implementing these training lessons at home, and began achieving world-class times over distances of 3 and 6 miles.

Championship performance

Stephens was further trained by coach

Percy Cerutty Percy Wells Cerutty (10 January 189514 August 1975) was an Australian athletics coach in the 1950s and 1960s. The eccentric Australian pioneered a home-spun system of "Stotan" training, embracing a holistic regime of natural diets, hard traini ...

, though Stephens was too 'free spirited' for the arrangement to last for long. Stephens won the 3 and 6 mile events at the 1955

Australian Athletics Championships The Australian Athletics Championships or Australian Open Track and Field Championships are held annually to determine Australia's champion athletes in a range of athletics events. The championships are the primary qualification trial for athle ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. The temperature during the 6 mile race was 46 °C (115 F), and Stephens yelled abuse at race officials as he passed them each lap for scheduling the event during the peak heat of the day. An official enquiry was convened to consider disqualification, to which Stephens apologised, telling the panel that the "heat must have got to me ... and I went troppo!" He was awarded the gold medal. Stephens set the 6 mile world record on 25 January 1956 at Olympic Park Stadium with a time of 27 minutes and 54.0 seconds. This was the first time an Australian had set a middle-distance world record at an Australian event.

Ron Clarke Ronald William Clarke, Officer of the Order of Australia, AO, Member of the Order of the British Empire, MBE (21 February 1937 – 17 June 2015) was an Australian athlete, writer, and the Mayor of the Gold Coast from 2004 to 2012. He was one o ...

, then 17-years old, witnessed this performance and was later quoted as saying "I was pretty young, and those races showed me for the first time that athletics could be exciting" and "Subconsciously, watching Stephens' races helped me come to the decision to compete as a club athlete instead of continuing to play cricket." Prior to the Olympics, however, he suffered a heel spur injury and as a result finished 20th in that event.

Personal life and death

After his running career, Stephens became a teacher at Williamstown South School. He died in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

on 5 November 2024, at the age of 95.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Dave 1928 births 2024 deaths Australian male long-distance runners Olympic athletes for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics Athletes from Melbourne Australian Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Australian sportsmen