Norman Read
Read in 1956
Personal information
Born13 August 1931
Portsmouth, England[1]
Died22 May 1994 (aged 62)
Pirongia, New Zealand
Height178 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight64 kg (141 lb)
Sport
SportAthletics
EventRace walking
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)20 km – 1:33:54 (1961)
50 km –
Medal record
Representing  New Zealand
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1956 Melbourne 50 km walk
Commonwealth Games
Bronze medal – third place 1966 Kingston 20 mile walk

Norman Richard Read (13 August 1931 – 22 May 1994) was a New Zealand racewalker.[2] Born in Portsmouth, England, Read emigrated to New Zealand in 1953. The self-proclaimed "Pommie-Kiwi" competed for New Zealand at the 1956 Olympics in the 50 km walk where he won the gold medal. For this achievement he was voted New Zealand’s Sportsman of the Year. Read also took part in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, finishing fifth in the 20 km walk and abandoning the 50 km race. He won a bronze medal in the 20 mile walk at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica, which was his last international tournament.[1]

Read continued competing domestically for another 18 years, retiring at the age 52. He won 18 national titles, placing second thrice and third four times.[2]

On 29 August 1968 Read married Megan Ann Crafar in Whangārei; they had three daughters and a son. After moving to New Plymouth, he founded New Zealand’s first race walking club. At the 1992 Summer Olympics he became only the second New Zealand Olympic judge. He was awarded a diploma by the International Amateur Athletic Federation on its 75th anniversary in 1987, and in 1990 he was elected a foundation member of the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame.[2] Read was also one of the first three inductees into the Taranaki Sports Hall of Fame at the Taranaki Sports Awards in 2009.[3]

Read died of a heart attack during a veteran's bike race in Pirongia.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Norman Read. sports-reference.com
  2. 1 2 3 Heidenstrøm, P. N. "Norman Richard Read". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  3. ↑ "Inaugural inductees to Taranaki Sports Hall of Fame". Stuff. 27 November 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
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