David Dickson
Personal information
Full nameDavid Gavin Dickson
National teamAustralia
Born (1941-02-20) 20 February 1941
Batu Gajah, British Malaya
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight76 kg (168 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesFreestyle
Medal record
Men's swimming
Representing Australia
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1960 Rome 4×200 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Tokyo 4×100 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Tokyo 4×100 m medley
British Empire and Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 1962 Perth 4×440 yd freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1962 Perth 4×440 yd medley
Bronze medal – third place 1962 Perth 110 yd freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1966 Kingston 4×440 yd freestyle
Gold medal – first place 1966 Kingston 4×880 yd freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1966 Kingston 110 yd freestyle

David Gavin Dickson (born 20 February 1941)[1] is an Australian freestyle swimmer who won three bronze medals in freestyle and medley relay events at the 1960 Summer Olympics and the 1964 Summer Olympics in Rome and Tokyo respectively.

Swimming career

Dickson was born in Malaya, where his father was stationed during World War II. He was three months old when he arrived in Perth, Western Australia. His schooling years were spent in Malaya, Geelong and Bunbury. Dickson was a member of the Bunbury Swimming Club.

Australian Championships

  • 110 yd freestyle - first in 1961, 1963, 1964, 1965
  • 220 yd freestyle - first in 1965[2]

Summer Olympics

Dickson was selected to make his international debut at 1960 Rome Olympics in the 4×200-metre freestyle relay. With John Konrads, Jon Henricks and Murray Rose, Dickson broke the world record on 6 August 1960, at the Tobruk Pool in Townsville, Queensland. However, in the Olympic final, swimming alongside individual gold medallists John Devitt, Murray Rose and John Konrads, Dickson finished third behind the United States and Japanese teams.[3]

Prior to the Tokyo Olympics, Dickson was sent on an international tour to compete, along with Berry, O'Brien and Bob Windle, in the hope that their honed racecraft would help them in Tokyo. The other three won gold in their respective events, but Dickson was eliminated in the semifinal of the 100m freestyle.

Along with John Ryan, Doak and Windle, Dickson won bronze in the 4×100-metre freestyle relay. He complemented this with another bronze in the 4×100-metre medley relay, alongside Berry, O'Brien and Peter Reynolds. He narrowly missed a medal in the 4×200-metre freestyle relay, finishing fourth with Windle, Doak and Allan Wood. He finished ninth in the 100 metre freesytle.[4]

British Empire and Commonwealth Games

At the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, Dickson finished third in the 110-yard freestyle, beaten by Dick Pound of Canada and Bobby McGregor of Scotland. However, Dickson won gold in the 4×110-yard freestyle relay (with Rose, Peter Doak and Peter Phelps) and the 4×110-yard medley relay with Julian Carroll, Ian O'Brien and Kevin Berry, all of whom had won their respective individual events.[5]

Dickson was accorded the honour of carrying the Australian flag at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica. He again took the bronze medal in the 110-yard freestyle, won by fellow Australian Michael Wenden, and won gold in both the 4×110-yard and 4×220 yd freestyle relays.[5]

Australian Olympic Committee

In 1989, Dickson was elected as the Australian Capital Territory's first representative on the board of the Australian Olympic Federation. He was a member of the 1996 Melbourne Olympic Games Bid.[6] In 1993, Dickson became an inaugural life of the ACT Olympic Council.[7]

Employment

Dickson started as a journalist with the ABC in Perth and then became Channel Nine Perth's first sports director.[6] He then spent 14 years in Europe including operating an import-export business in the South of France and then being appointed the Head Coach for French Swimming. In 1980, Dickson was appointed the inaugural Manager of the National Sports Centre in Canberra that became the home of the Australian Institute of Sport. He was the permanent Australian Capital Territory Tourism Commissioner from 1985 to 1988. In 1980, Dickson was appointed the inaugural Manager of the National Sports Centre in Canberra that was to become the home of the Australian Institute of Sport.[8][6] He was the permanent Australian Capital Territory Tourism Commissioner from 1985 to 1988.[6][9]

Recognition

See also

References

  1. ↑ "David Dickson Olympic medals and stats". Archived from the original on 5 January 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2009.
  2. ↑ Pollard, Jack (1973). Ampol's Sporting Records. North Sydney: Jack Pollard.
  3. ↑ "David Dickson". Australian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  4. ↑ "David Dickson". Olympedia. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  5. 1 2 "David Dickson". Commonwealth Games Australia. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "THE WEEK". The Canberra Times. Vol. 59, no. 18, 087. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 6 April 1985. p. 2. Retrieved 22 December 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "Two ACT Olympic stalwarts rewarded". The Canberra Times. Vol. 67, no. 21, 207. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 8 May 1993. p. 12 (SECTION 1). Retrieved 22 December 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ nfo/download/media/pressrel/HPR08006256/upload_binary/HPR08006256.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf#search=%22media/pressrel/HPR08006256%22 "Manager of National Sports Centre - Dept of the Capital Territory". ParlInfo. Retrieved 22 December 2022. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  9. ↑ "ACT tourist commissioner - Department of Territories and Local Government Media Statement". ParlInfo. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  10. ↑ "Swimming WA Award Recipients" (PDF). Swimming Western Australia. 31 May 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  11. ↑ "David Gavin Dickson". It's An Honour. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  12. ↑ "Swimming WA Hall of Fame". Swimming WA. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  13. ↑ "South West Hall of Fame". South West Sports Centre. Retrieved 22 December 2022.

Bibliography

  • Andrews, Malcolm (2000). Australia at the Olympic Games. Sydney, New South Wales: ABC Books. p. 132. ISBN 0-7333-0884-8.
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