Gordon Reuben Alexander (1885 – 24 April 1917) was a British
fencer. He competed in the individual
foil
Foil may refer to:
Materials
* Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine
* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal
* Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food
* Tin foil, metal foil ma ...
and
épée
The (, ; ), also rendered as epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains a ...
events at the
1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...
.
He was killed in action during
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
.
Death
While attacking the town of
Villers-Plouich
Villers-Plouich () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France, situated 14 km south-west of the town of Cambrai
Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord ...
, a fellow soldier was wounded by a German artillery shell, and Alexander rushed to help him. While Alexander was dressing the soldier's wound, he was killed by another shell.
Fencing career
In 1912, he competed in the individual foil and épée events at the 1912 Summer Olympics. the following year in 1913, he won the foil title at the
British Fencing Championships.
See also
*
List of Olympians killed in World War I
References
External links
*
1885 births
1917 deaths
British military personnel killed in World War I
British male fencers
Olympic fencers for Great Britain
Fencers at the 1912 Summer Olympics
People from Kensington
Sportspeople from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
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