Australasia was the name of a combined team from Australia and New Zealand that competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. It was the fourth appearance of Australia, which had not missed any edition of the Summer Olympic Games, and the first appearance of New Zealand. The two would compete together again as Australasia at the 1912 Summer Olympics before competing separately at every edition of the Summer Games since. In 1908 there were three New Zealanders, Harry Kerr, Henry Murray and Albert Rowland (a fourth New Zealander, hurdler Arthur Halligan, competed for Great Britain);[1] all other competitors were Australian. There were 30 competitors for Australasia who competed in 20 events in six sports.[2] A further two competitors, who were to compete in tennis, did not play as their nominations failed to reach the organisers.
| Australasia at the 1908 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 Australasian Olympic Flag | |
| IOC code | ANZ |
| in London, United Kingdom 27 April – 31 October 1908 | |
| Competitors | 30 in 6 sports |
| Flag bearer | Henry St Aubyn Murray |
| Medals Ranked 11th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
| Other related appearances | |
 Australia (1896–1904, 1920–) New Zealand (1920–) | |
Medallists
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gold |
Australia national rugby union team |
Rugby union | October 26 | |
 Silver |
Snowy Baker (AUS) | Boxing | Middleweight | October 27 |
| Silver |
Frank Beaurepaire (AUS) | Swimming | Men's 400 m freestyle | July 16 |
 Bronze |
Harry Kerr (NZL) | Athletics | Men's 3500 m walk | July 14 |
| Bronze |
Frank Beaurepaire (AUS) | Swimming | Men's 1500 m freestyle | July 25 |
Athletics
Track & road events
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Harvey Sutton | 800 m | 2:00.0 | 3 | — | did not advance | ||
| Joseph Lynch | 1500 m | Unknown | 5 | — | did not advance | ||
| Charles Swain | did not finish | — | did not advance | ||||
| George Blake | 5 miles | Unknown | 3 | — | did not advance | ||
| Joseph Lynch | did not finish | — | did not advance | ||||
| Henry Murray | 110 m hurdles | 16.3 | 2 | did not advance | |||
| Henry Murray | 400 m hurdles | 59.8 | 2 | did not advance | |||
| Victor Aitken | Marathon | — | did not finish | ||||
| George Blake | — | did not finish | |||||
| Joseph Lynch | — | did not finish | |||||
| Harry Kerr | 3500 m walk | 16:02.2 | 2 Q | — | 15:43.4 | | |
| Albert Rowland | 16:08.6 | 3 Q | — | 16:07.0 | 5 | ||
| Harry Kerr | 10 miles walk | 1:18:40.2 | 3 Q | — | did not start | ||
| Albert Rowland | 1:21:57.6 | 5 | — | did not advance | |||
Field events
| Athlete | Event | Final | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | Position | ||
| Ernest Hutcheon | Men's standing high jump | Unknown | 19-23 |
Boxing
| Athlete | Event | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Snowy Baker | Middleweight |  Dees (GBR)W KO |
Child (GBR) W |
Philo (GBR) W |
Douglas (GBR) L 1-2 |
|
Diving
| Athlete | Event | Preliminary Round | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | ||
| Snowy Baker | 3 m springboard | 61.3 | 6 | did not advance | |||
Rugby
Australasia won the only rugby union match played in 1908 against Great Britain, earning the gold medal. The Australasian representative was the Australia national team.
| Event | Place | Players | Final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's rugby union | 1st | Phil Carmichael, Charles Russell, Daniel Carroll, John Hickey, Francis Bede-Smith, Chris McKivat, Arthur McCabe, Thomas Griffen, John "Jumbo" Barnett, Patrick McCue, Sydney Middleton, Tom Richards, Malcolm McArthur, Charles McMurtrie, Bob Craig | Won vs. Great Britain 32–3 |
Shooting
| Event | Place | Shooter | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's stationary target small-bore rifle | 16th | William Hill | 354 |
| Men's moving target small-bore rifle | — | William Hill | Did not finish |
| Men's disappearing target small-bore rifle | 18th | William Hill | 36 |
Swimming
| Event | Place | Swimmer | Heats | Semifinals | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's 100 metre freestyle | Semi- finalist | Frank Beaurepaire | 1:11.6 1st, heat 3 | Unknown 4th, semifinal 1 | Did not advance |
| Heats | Theo Tartakover | Unknown 2nd, heat 1 | Did not advance | ||
| Edward Cooke | Unknown 3–4, heat 6 | ||||
| Men's 400 metre freestyle | 2nd | Frank Beaurepaire | 5:49.2 1st, heat 4 | 5:44.0 1st, semifinal 1 | 5:44.2 |
| Semi- finalist | Theo Tartakover | 6:35.0 1st, heat 3 | Did not start —, semifinal 1 | Did not advance | |
| Heats | Frank Springfield | 5:57.4 2nd, heat 6 | Did not advance | ||
| Men's 1500 metre freestyle | 3rd | Frank Beaurepaire | 23:45.8 1st, heat 2 | 23:25.4 2nd, semifinal 1 | 22:56.2 |
| Heats | Frederick Springfield | 24:52.4 2nd, heat 4 | Did not advance | ||
| Men's 200 metre breaststroke | — | Edward Cooke | Did not finish —, heat 5 | Did not advance | |
| Men's 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay | 4th | Frank Beaurepaire Frederick Springfield Snowy Baker Theo Tartakover | None held | 11:35.0 1st, semifinal 1 | Unknown |
Tennis
Les Poidevin and Anthony Wilding (who were partners in the 1906 Davis Cup preliminary round at Newport) were nominated for the Australasian team by the Australasian Lawn Tennis Association, but their nominations failed to reach the organisers. So the pair watched the "small, impoverished and out of place" Australasian contingent alongside the "tailored splendour" of some European teams. Although many leading tennis players bypassed the Olympic tournament (which followed almost immediately after Wimbledon) and his goal had been Wimbledon, Wilding regretted the missed opportunity and endorsed his mother's summing up of the administrative bungling: "seems very careless of them & very annoying".[3]
References
External links
Sources
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