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Ron Clarke dies, aged 78

Ron Clarke. (Photo: AFP)
Expert
16th June, 2015
7

Ron Clarke was the undisputed best mid to long distance track athlete during his career breaking 17 world records, but that superb ability was never converted into Olympic or Commonwealth Games gold.

There was no justice in that as we salute a great bloke who died this morning in Brisbane after a short illness.

He was 78.

Clarke had the most auspicious start to his career as a 19-year-old in 1956.

In the 1500m final of the Australia Championships, Clarke fell heavily. race leader and world mile record holder John Landy stopped, went back to lift the fallen Clarke and despite the delay and the ultimate in sportsmanship, Landy went on to win the race.

Weeks later, Ron Clarke had the highest honour possible when he lit the flame at the Melbourne Olympics, and was severely burned on his legs from the sparks.

In 1965, Clarke took off on a 44-day tour of Europe where he set 12 new world records, nine of them in just 21 days.

He broke the 5000m world record four times for a total of 18 seconds, and the 10,000 world record three times for a total of 39 seconds.

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Phenomenal.

But his only medal returns were bronze at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics over 10,000 metres, and four Commonwealth Games silvers – 1962 in Perth and 1966 in Kingston over three miles, a six-mile silver at Kingston, and over 10,000 at Edinburgh in 1970.

In another memorable moment in his life, Ron Clarke was invited to Czechoslovakia by distance legend Emil Zatopek who gave the Australian his 1952 Olympic 10000 gold medal – “Not as a fiend, but because you deserve it”.

Ron once told me if he had his career all over again he would have hired a coach, instead of coaching himself.

“I wasn’t a good tactical racer,” he added, “A coach would have sorted me out, but it’s too late now”.

But it’s not too late to remind-sports lovers of his world record-breaking feats – all 17 of them:

Two miles – twice.
Three miles – four times.
Six miles – twice.
Ten miles – once.
5000m – four times.
10,000m – twice.
20 kilometres – once.

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And the most staggering of them all, the one-hour world record covering 20,232 metres.

Ron was inducted into the Sports Australia Hall of Fame in 1985, and Athletics Australia Hall of Fame in 2000.

And from 2004 to 2012, Ron was the Mayor of the Gold Coast where his vision and energy made the famous holiday resort even more popular.

So thanks for the many memories Ron – you were always a gentleman, and a gentle man.

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