Joan Cynthia Harrison (later ''Breetzke'', 29 November 1935 – 20 May 2025) was a South African

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

who won the 100 metres backstroke event at the

1952 Olympics 1952 Olympics refers to both: *The 1952 Winter Olympics, which were held in Oslo, Norway *The 1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics (, ), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad (, ) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952, were a ...

. Harrison was born in 1935 in

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

, South Africa. After setting multiple national records and winning multiple national titles at 13 years old, the year later, she won the 440-yard freestyle event at the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games were the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand, between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. A documentary fil ...

. She then won gold in the 100 metres backstroke event at the 1952

Helsinki Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics (, ), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad (, ) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952, were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. After Japan declared in ...

, making her the first South African swimmer to win Olympic gold. Harrison then won multiple medals, including two golds, at the

1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Vancouver, British Columbia, from 30 July to 7 August 1954. This was the fifth edition of the event that would eventually become known as the Commonwealth Games, the second post-war G ...

. She retired from international competitive swimming in 1956 at 17 years old.

Career

Joan Cynthia Harrison was born on 29 November 1935 in

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope (), commonly referred to as the Cape Province () and colloquially as The Cape (), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa. It encompassed the old Cape Co ...

, South Africa. Her mother was a swimmer and her father played rugby. At 13 years old, Harrison won the 220-yard and 500-yard

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Laboritories Media * '' FreeStyle'', ...

events at the South African national swimming championships. She also held two South African records and three South African junior records in the sport. At the

she won the 440-yard freestyle event, finishing seven seconds ahead of second place with a new competition record which broke the old record by thirteen seconds. The also won bronze in the 110-yard freestyle event at that competition. In 1952, she won gold in the 100 metres backstroke event at the

. This win made her the first South African swimmer to win Olympic gold. The next South African woman to win an Olympic medal was

Penny Heyns Penelope ("Penny") Heyns OIS (born 8 November 1974) is a South African former swimmer, who is best known for being the only woman in the history of the Olympic Games to have won both the 100 m and 200 m breaststroke events – at the 1996 Atla ...

in 1996. Upon arriving home from these Games, Harrison was greeted by thousands of people in the city hall. She later said: "People made a fuss about it. But my life did not really change. I was still an ordinary girl from East London. When we arrived back in the city there were thousands of people waiting for me at the city hall." At the

, Harrison won gold in the 110 yards backstroke, gold as part of the South African team in the 4×110 yards freestyle relay, silver as part of the South African team in the 3×110 yards medley relay, and bronze in the 110 yards freestyle. She retired from international competitive swimming in 1956 at 17 years old, though she later competed at the 1956 South African national championships, where she won two events.

Personal life

Harrison attended

Clarendon High School for Girls Clarendon High School for Girls is a Private school, private South African English, English medium high school for girls situated in the suburb of Selborne of East London, Eastern Cape, East London in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa ...

. She married in 1956 to Charles Breetzke, changing her name to Joan Breetzke, and had four children. In December 2022, Harrison's Olympic and Commonwealth medals were stolen from her house. In January, they were returned, having been found lying in some grass in the city.

Death and legacy

In 1982, Harrison was inducted into the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the stu ...

. In 2023, an aquatics centre in Clarendon was built, named the "Harrison Aquatic Centre" in her honour. Harrison died on 20 May 2025, at the age of 89.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Joan 1935 births 2025 deaths Sportspeople from East London, South Africa South African female backstroke swimmers South African female freestyle swimmers South African female swimmers Olympic swimmers for South Africa Swimmers at the 1952 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1950 British Empire Games Swimmers at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Olympic gold medalists for South Africa Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for South Africa Commonwealth Games swimmers for South Africa Commonwealth Games gold medallists in swimming Commonwealth Games silver medallists for South Africa Commonwealth Games silver medallists in swimming Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for South Africa Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in swimming South African people of British descent Olympic gold medalists in swimming Alumni of Clarendon High School for Girls 20th-century South African sportswomen Medallists at the 1950 British Empire Games Medallists at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games International Swimming Hall of Fame inductees

Career

Personal life

Death and legacy

See also

References

External links