Henry Sutton Harmer (8 July 1883 – 9 January 1958) was a British

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

who competed at the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally schedu ...

Biography

Harmer was born in

West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

and he and his younger brother Frederick Harmer both joined the newly formed Southend Harriers in 1906. Henry had significant success at the Essex County Championships, winning the 100 yards in 1906 and 1907 and the 440 yards titles in 1906, 1907 and 1908. Harmer represented

Great Britain at the 1908 Summer Olympics Great Britain, represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), competed as the host nation of the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. The British Olympic Association was the National Olympic Committee responsible for organising the United King ...

in the 100 metres event, Harmer did not finish in his first round heat and was eliminated from competition. His younger brother Frederick was also selected for the games to compete in the 400 metres hurdles. Harmer had a 40 year career in shipping, which included time in Canada and served 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 ...

with the Canadian Red Cross. After returning to England in 1947, he lived in Devon and died in

Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 13,258 in 2021, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has ...

on 9 January 1958.

References

Sources

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External links

* 1883 births 1958 deaths Olympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics English male sprinters British male sprinters People from West Ham Athletes from the London Borough of Newham {{England-sprint-athletics-bio-stub