Norman Pritchard
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From the archives of ''The Times of India'': 2008 | From the archives of ''The Times of India'': 2008 | ||
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There was an athlete — Norman Pritchard — who had already won two medals in the 1900 Paris Games. Born in 1875 in Calcutta to an English couple, he studied in St Xavier’s School. Pritchard was a name to reckon with in the Calcutta maidan, winning the 100-yard dash for seven consecutive years. | There was an athlete — Norman Pritchard — who had already won two medals in the 1900 Paris Games. Born in 1875 in Calcutta to an English couple, he studied in St Xavier’s School. Pritchard was a name to reckon with in the Calcutta maidan, winning the 100-yard dash for seven consecutive years. | ||
Revision as of 19:42, 28 June 2015
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
A profile
Ronojoy Sen | TNN
From the archives of The Times of India: 2008
FORGOTTEN OLYMPIAN
There was an athlete — Norman Pritchard — who had already won two medals in the 1900 Paris Games. Born in 1875 in Calcutta to an English couple, he studied in St Xavier’s School. Pritchard was a name to reckon with in the Calcutta maidan, winning the 100-yard dash for seven consecutive years.
Pritchard’s participation in the Olympics happened almost by chance. During a visit to London in 1900 he took part in and won the London Athletic Club’s Challenge Cup for the 440-yard hurdles. Within a week he was competing against international athletes at the AAA Championship. Pritchard came second in the 120-yard hurdles and was chosen for the Paris Olympics. Pritchard competed in five events and won silver medals in the 200m sprint and 200m hurdles.
There is, however, a dispute over whether Pritchard represented India in Paris. Though the International Olympic Committee credited his medals to India, the athletics statistics book of the 2004 Olympics said he represented Britain. This was after an article had appeared in the Journal of Olympic History arguing that Pritchard had represented Great Britain. As for Pritchard, he returned to Calcutta after the Olympics and served as secretary of the Indian Football Association for two years. Later, he left for America and made a career in Hollywood, starring in silent films under the name of Norman Trevor alongside stars such as Cary Grant, Clara Bow and Ronald Colman. Legend has it that he died penniless in 1929.
