Harold Abrahams

Athlete

• Born: December 15, 1899
• Birthplace: Bedford, England
• Died: January 14, 1978
• Place of death: London, England

Sport: Track and field (sprints and long jump)

Early Life

Harold Maurice Abrahams’ spectacular victory in the 100 meters at the 1924 Paris Olympics was commemorated in the Academy Award-winning film Chariots of Fire (1981). Harold was born into a wealthy Lithuanian Jewish family on December 15, 1899, in Bedford, England. Harold was the third son of Isaac and Esther Abrahams, and his desire to excel in sport was mostly the result of sibling competitiveness. Both his brothers were high-caliber athletes, and one had been a member of the English team at the Stockholm Olympics in 1912. Harold was a sociable person, and, although he was an outsider among the English elite, he was not adversely affected and succeeded in almost everything he attempted. He had a privileged education, attending Repton, a famous independent school for boys.

The Road to Excellence

Late in World War I, Harold became a lieutenant in the British army. After the war, he attended Cambridge University, where he received his bachelor of laws degree in 1922 and his master’s degree in 1923. While there, he continued to develop his athletic skills, and from 1920 to 1923, won eight events in track and field competitions with rival Oxford. He was also president of the Cambridge University Athletic Club. By this time, Harold had already participated in the 1920 Antwerp Olympics. He had been eliminated in the quarterfinals of the 100 and 200 meters. That performance had not been a memorable one, and, with the 1924 Paris Olympics fast approaching, the 6-foot- 1/2 inch, 170-pound athlete began training more seriously.

Harold acquired the services of Sam Mussabini, who, over the previous two decades, had become a familiar figure as a coach in the track and field world. One of Mussabini’s athletes had already won the 100 meters in the 1908 London Olympics. Harold hoped that Mussabini could help him do the same. With Mussabini’s coaching, Harold was able to perfect his stride in the sprints by placing pieces of paper on the track and hitting them with his spikes. Before every race, he also measured out the length of his initial stride with a piece of string that he carried with him.

The Emerging Champion

Harold’s success as sprinter overshadowed the fact that he was England’s best long jumper, having set a national record of 24 feet 2 1/2 inches—which stood until 1956—a month before the Paris Olympics. Harold was supposed to compete in the long jump in Paris but dropped out to concentrate on the 100 and 200 meters as well as the 4 100 relay. For some it seemed a strange choice; his fastest times in the sprints were not close to the world records of the U.S. sprinter Charles Paddock, who would be competing at Paris. Harold’s prospects for winning a gold medal certainly looked better in the long jump. Nevertheless, by July, 1924, he was at the peak of readiness.

Considered a long shot in an event dominated by Americans, Harold registered the fastest preliminary times in the quarter- and semifinals and set an Olympic and European record with his personal best times of 10.6 seconds in both. At 7:05 p.m., on July 7, Harold stepped to the line with the fastest men in the world for the 100-meter final at Colombes Stadium in Paris. Uncharacteristically, he was feeling the intense pressure. He concentrated on Mussabini’s final words of instruction and advice. When the race was over, Harold had beaten the best in the world by 2 feet and tied his earlier Olympic record of 10.6 seconds. His victory was a stunning upset and guaranteed his Olympic immortality.

Continuing the Story

Harold’s subsequent performance in the 200-meter final was undistinguished. He finished a distant sixth. He picked up an additional medal in the 4 100 relay when his team finished second. Mentally, psychologically, and physically, he had prepared himself to be the best for one glorious moment. When the 100-meter race was over, his athletic career was never the same. The next year, he broke his leg while posing for photographers and retired from competition.

Although Harold no longer competed, his association with athletics continued for the rest of his life. In 1928, he was team captain of the British Olympic team at Amsterdam and editor of the official British Olympic report for the same Games. He also edited the 1936 Berlin report. In that same year, he married a beautiful singer named Sybil Gordon. Over his lifetime, Abrahams was a member of or officer in various athletic organizations, including the Council of the British Olympic Association, the English Amateur Athletic Association, the British Amateur Athletic Board, the International Association of Athletics Federations, and the World Association of Track and Field Statisticians. He was an athletic correspondent for various newspapers until 1968, and a broadcaster beginning in 1924. He authored numerous books on athletics, most notably The Olympic Games, 1896-1952 and The Rome Olympiad, 1960. He was also the timekeeper for Roger Bannister’s historic four-minute mile.

A lawyer since 1924, Harold served the English government in various functions throughout his long career. He was secretary of the National Parks Commission from 1950 to 1963 and temporary assistant secretary of the Ministry of Economic Warfare from 1942-1944.

When he died in London at the age of seventy-eight on January 14, 1978, Harold was the elder statesman of English athletics. In 2007, an English Heritage Blue Plaque, which indicates a place of historical significance, was installed at Harold’s former place of residence in Golders Green, a suburb of London.

Summary

Through hard work, determination, and intense training, Harold Abrahams perhaps surpassed his physical capabilities to outclass a superior field at Paris and become the first European to win the 100 meters at an Olympic Games. His time of 10.6 seconds established an Olympic record. Never allowing prejudice to deter him, Abrahams took his place in the world of the English elite and excelled at everything he did. He was a rare example of the complete athlete on the field and the complete citizen in serving his sport and country.

Bibliography

Collins, Douglas. Olympic Dreams: One Hundred Years of Excellence. New York: Universe, 1996.

Slater, Robert. Great Jews in Sports. Rev. ed. Middle Village, N.Y.: Jonathan David, 2005.

Weatherby, W. J. Chariots of Fire: A True Story. New York: Dell, 1981.

Wise, Michael T., Christina Bankes, and Jane Laing, eds. Chronicle of the Olympics, 1896-1996. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1996.