Edward Russell Mockridge (18 July 1928 – 13 September 1958) was a racing

cyclist Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

from

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

, Victoria, Australia. He died during a race, in collision with a bus.

Family

The son of Robert Glover Mockridge and Aileen Claire Mockridge, née Riley, Edward Russell Mockridge (known as Russell) was born in Melbourne on 18 July 1928. Mockridge married Irene Pritchard (-2004), widely known as "Rene", in London, in 1953; they had a daughter, Melinda, who was born in

Ghent, Belgium Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

in December 1954.

Career

Mockridge started in 1946 by winning his first race of 40 km with Geelong Amateur Cycling Club. For his upper-class accent he was dubbed ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'', but his wins soon earned him the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

of ''The Geelong Flyer''. He became described as 'Australia's greatest all-round cyclist for all time'. His ride in 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 ...

road race in London was ruined by two punctures and his team was eliminated in the quarter-final of the 4000 m team pursuit. He represented Australia 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 ...

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. He took gold in the 1000 m sprint and the 1000m time trial, and silver in the 4000 m pursuit. In Paris in July 1952 he won the Amateur Grand Prix and the following day the Open Grand Prix, beating world professional champion Reg Harris, becoming first to win both amateur and professional Paris Sprints. His humiliation of the professionals led to amateur riders being barred for many years. Later that year, he won

Manchester Wheelers' Club Manchester Wheelers' Club is a cycling club in Manchester, in north-west England. Formation and early history The club was formed on 7 July 1883, as Manchester Athletic Bicycle Club, the name being changed to Manchester Wheelers' Club in 1890. Th ...

Muratti Cup again beating Reg Harris. Selection for the

1952 Summer 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 ...

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

was in doubt as he refused to sign the Australian Olympic Federation fidelity bond, which demanded he remain amateur for two years after the Games. A great former cyclist, Hubert Opperman, then Federal parliamentarian for

, negotiated a one-year reduction. Mockridge won gold medals in the tandem event with Lionel Cox, and in the 1000 m time trial. He turned professional a year later with success in Europe and Australia. He teamed with Sid Patterson and Reginald Arnold to win the Paris six-day race in 1955. Mockridge was one of 60 of 150 entrants to finish the 1955 Tour de France. He won 12 consecutive Australian championships. He won the Australian national road race title in 1956, 1957 and 1958.

Death

In 1958, aged 30, he was killed by a bus 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 ...

at the Dandenong Rd and Clayton Rd intersection, two miles from the start of the 225 km Tour of Gippsland race.There was a court case: se
Taylor, Jim, "How it Feels to Be Hit by a Bus", ''The Age'', Wednesday, 19 January 2005.
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Recognition

*In 2015, he was an inaugural Cycling Australia Hall of Fame inductee.

References

External links