John Doms (5 November 1924 in

Waarloos Waarloos is a village and ''deelgemeente'' (sub-municipality) of the municipality of Kontich in the province of Antwerp, Belgium. The village is located about south of the city of Antwerp. History Waarloos was first mentioned in 1188 when th ...

– 27 June 2013 in

Duffel Duffel () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Belgium, Belgian province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. The municipality comprises the town of Duffel proper. On 1 January 2020, Duffel had a total population of 17,664. The total ar ...

) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

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 ...

who competed in

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...

and the

steeplechase SteepleChase Records is a jazz record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time. He began recording concerts at Jazzhus Montmartre, ...

. His greatest achievements came at the

International Cross Country Championships The International Cross Country Championships was an annual international competition in cross- country running. It was created in 1903 by the International Cross Country Union (ICCU) and it marked the first time that an annual international ch ...

(the precursor to the world championship). He became Belgium's first ever winner of the event in

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The current Constitutions of Constitution of Italy, Italy and of Constitution of New Jersey, New Jersey (both later subject to amendment) ...

, leading the Belgian men to the team title as well. He returned four times further, taking 12th in both 1949 and 1950, before sinking out of the top twenty at the two following year's races. He shared in the team silver medal in both 1950 and 1951. His Belgian team contemporaries included

Marcel Vandewattyne Marcel Eugène Vandewattyne (7 July 1924 – 18 September 2009) was a Belgian long-distance runner who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics and in the 1952 Summer Olympics. Vandewattyne won the British AAA Championships title in the steeplecha ...

and

Lucien Theys Lucien Maurice Theys (25 February 1927 – 19 January 1996) was a Belgian long-distance runner who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics and in the 1952 Summer Olympics. He was the winner of the 1950 International Cross Country Championships. ...

. He was born in Waarloos,

Antwerp Province Antwerp Province (; ; ; ), between 1815 and 1830 known as Central Brabant ( , , ), is the northernmost Provinces of Belgium, province both of the Flemish Region, also called Flanders, and of Belgium. It borders on the North Brabant province of t ...

and died in

. He represented Belgium at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and officially branded as London 1948, were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus cau ...

in London, running in the steeplechase, though he was eliminated in qualifying. He represented Belgium on the track at one further major competition – he placed ninth in the

10,000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The ...

at the

1950 European Athletics Championships The 4th European Athletics Championships were held from 23 August to 27 August 1950 in the Heysel Stadium of the Belgium, Belgian capital Brussels. Contemporaneous reports on the event were given in the Glasgow Herald. Men's results Complet ...

.European Athletics Championships Zürich 2014 - STATISTICS HANDBOOK

European Athletics Association The European Athletic Association (EAA, more commonly known as European Athletics) is the governing body for athletics in Europe. It is one of the six Area Associations of the world's athletics governing body World Athletics. European Athletics h ...

, pp. 372-377. Retrieved on 2016-04-27.

International competitions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doms, John 1924 births 2013 deaths Athletes from Antwerp Province Belgian male long-distance runners Belgian male steeplechase runners Olympic athletes for Belgium Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics International Cross Country Championships winners People from Kontich 20th-century Belgian sportsmen