Maxwell Woosnam
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| Max Woosnam | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Maxwell Woosnam | |
| Date of birth | September 6, 1892 | |
| Place of birth | Liverpool, England | |
| Date of death | July 14, 1965 | |
| Place of death | London, England | |
| Position | Centre half | |
| Professional clubs* | ||
| Years | Club | Apps (goals) |
| 1914 1919–1923 |
Chelsea Manchester City |
3 (0) 96 (4) |
| National team | ||
| 1922 | England | 1 (0) |
|
* Professional club appearances and goals |
||
| Olympic medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's Tennis | |||
| Gold | 1920 Antwerp | Doubles | |
| Silver | 1920 Antwerp | Mixed doubles | |
Max Woosnam (September 6, 1892 - July 14, 1965) was a British World War I veteran, and was unarguably one of the greatest all-round sportsmen that Britain ever produced.
Born to a wealthy family in Liverpool, Woosnam spent most of his childhood in Aberhafesp, Mid Wales. He attended Winchester College, where he captained the golf and cricket teams, while also representing the school at football and squash. As a schoolboy he scored 144 for a Public Schools XI while playing against the MCC at Lord's.
In 1911 he enrolled in Cambridge university. Whilst here he represented the university at football, cricket, lawn tennis, real tennis and golf.
After Cambridge he played amateur football for the then highly successful team, Corinthian Casuals and Chelsea
In the First World War he fought alongside Siegfried Sassoon fighting on the western front and the Gallipoli Campaign.
After the war Woosnam continued his amateur sporting career taking part in several sporting events including Wimbledon and began to attract a great deal of fame. He declined the opportunity of becoming a professional sportsman, finding the idea 'vulgar'.
Upon moving to Manchester he signed for Manchester City (on amateur terms) eventually rising to become its captain at the recommendation of his team-mates. This was highly unusual for an amateur among professionals. Eventually his success allowed him to play England (both for the amateur team and as a full international). Woosnam was also selected to captain the British football team at Olympics, but refused, having already committed himself to the tennis team. He continued other sporting endeavours outside of football however, winning doubles titles at Wimbledon and the Olympics, and captaining the Great British Davis Cup team.
He ended up on the board of ICI, and died in 1965 of respiratory failure.
His life is chronicled in the book All Round Genius - The Unknown Story of Britain's Greatest Sportsman, by Mick Collins.
Woosnam's uncle, Hylton Philipson, was a cricketer and played five Test matches for England.
He once defeated actor and film director Charlie Chaplin at table tennis while playing with a butter knife instead of a bat.[1]
[edit] References
- Collins, Mick (2006). All-Round Genius: The Unknown Story of Britain's Greatest Sportsman. London: Aurum Press Limited. ISBN 1-84513-137-1.
[edit] See also
- C. B. Fry, Cuthbert Ottaway and Alfred Lyttelton — three similar sporting polymaths.
Categories: 1892 births | 1965 deaths | Old Wykehamists | Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge | English footballers | England international footballers | Corinthians F.C. players | Chelsea F.C. players | Manchester City F.C. players | Football (soccer) defenders | British tennis players | Wimbledon champions | Olympic tennis players of Great Britain | English cricketers | Cambridge University cricketers
