| 2nd British Empire Games | |
|---|---|
| Host city | London, England, United Kingdom |
| Nations participating | 17 |
| Athletes participating | 500 |
| Events | 68 |
| Opening ceremony | 4 August |
| Closing ceremony | 11 August |
| Main Stadium | White City Stadium |
The 1934 British Empire Games were the second of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games. They were held at the White City Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom from 4–11 August 1934, apart from the cycling at Fallowfield Stadium, Manchester, and the swimming, which took place at the Empire Pool in Wembley. Seventeen national teams took part, including the Irish Free State (the only Games in which they participated, although at the 1930 Games a team representing the whole of Ireland competed).
The 1934 Games had originally been awarded to Johannesburg, South Africa, but were changed to London because of concerns (particularly from Canada) about the way South Africa would treat black and Asian athletes.
Six sports were featured in the Games: athletics, boxing, cycling, lawn bowls, swimming and diving, and wrestling. A highlight of the 1934 Games was the inclusion of events for women in athletics, with careful consideration given not to include events that were considered 'too exhaustive'. The running events were restricted to the short sprints and a shortened 4 x 220 yard relay instead of the 4 x 440 yard relay as per the men's program. Nevertheless this was a breakthrough for women in sport that would one day lead to full recognition and programming for women's athletics on the international stage.
Contents |
Teams participating for the first time in bold.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 29 | 20 | 24 | 73 |
| 2 | Canada | 17 | 25 | 9 | 51 |
| 3 | Australia | 8 | 4 | 2 | 14 |
| 4 | South Africa | 7 | 10 | 5 | 22 |
| 5 | Scotland | 5 | 4 | 17 | 26 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 7 | British Guiana | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Wales | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 9 | Northern Ireland | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 10 | Jamaica | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | Southern Rhodesia | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 12 | India | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 68 | 68 | 68 | 204 | |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flyweight | Patrick Palmer (ENG) | Maxie Berger (CAN) | Jackie Pottinger (WAL) |
| Bantamweight | Freddy Ryan (ENG) | Albert Barnes (WAL) | Thomas Wells (SCO) |
| Featherweight | Charles Catterall (SAF) | J.D. Jones (WAL) | William Fulton (RHO) |
| Lightweight | Leslie Cook (AUS) | Frank Taylor (WAL) | Harry Moy (ENG) |
| Welterweight | Dave McCleave (ENG) | Dick Barton (SAF) | William Duncan (NIR) |
| Middleweight | Alf Shawyer (ENG) | Leonard Wadsworth (CAN) | Jimmy Magill (NIR) |
| Light heavyweight | George Brennan (ENG) | George Holton (SCO) | Robey Leibbrandt (SAF) |
| Heavyweight | Pat Floyd (ENG) | Jan van Rensburg (SAF) | David Douglas-Hamilton (SCO) |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time Trial | Dunc Gray (AUS) | 1:16.4 | Bob McLeod (CAN) | 1:18.0 | Ted Clayton (SAF) | 1:18.4 |
| Sprint 1000 yd | Ernest Higgins (ENG) | Horace Pethybridge (AUS) | Ted Clayton (SAF) | |||
| 10 mile Scratch | Bob McLeod (CAN) | 24:26.2 | Ted Clayton (SAF) | William Harvell (ENG) | ||
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 m springboard | J. Briscoe Ray (ENG) | 117.12 | Doug Tomalin (ENG) | 110.50 | Harry Class (CAN) | 106.57 |
| 10 m platform | Tommy Mather (ENG) | 83.83 | Doug Tomalin (ENG) | 83.63 | Louis Marchant (ENG) | 70.64 |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 m springboard | Judith Moss (CAN) | 62.27 | Lesley Thompson (AUS) | 60.49 | Doris Ogilvie (CAN) | 57.00 |
| 10 m platform | Elizabeth MacReady (ENG) | 30.74 | Lesley Thompson (AUS) | 27.64 | Cecily Cousens (ENG) | 27.36 |
All events were for men only.
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singles | Robert Sprot (SCO) | W. S. MacDonald (CAN) | Andrew Harvey (SAF) |
| Pairs | Tommy Hills and George Wright (ENG) |
W. G. Hutchinson and A. A. Langford (CAN) |
Thomas Davies and Stan Weaver (WAL) |
| Fours | England Fred Biggin Ernie Gudgeon Percy Thomlinson Robert Slater |
Northern Ireland Percy Watson Charlie Clawson George Watson Cecil Curran |
Scotland William Lowe Charles Tait James Morrison James Brown |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 yd freestyle | George Burleigh (CAN) | 55.0 | George Larson (CAN) | 55.6 | Noel Crump (NZL) | 56.2 |
| 440 yd freestyle | Noel Ryan (AUS) | 5:03.0 | Norman Wainwright (ENG) | 5:07.8 | Bob Pirie (CAN) | 5:14.8 |
| 1500 yd freestyle | Noel Ryan (AUS) | 18:25.4 | Bob Pirie (CAN) | 18:28.4 | Norman Wainwright (ENG) | 18:33.2 |
| 100 yd backstroke | Willie Francis (SCO) | 01:05.2 | John Besford (ENG) | 1:05.6 | Ben Gazell (CAN) | 1:06.6 |
| 200 yd breaststroke | Norman Hamilton (SCO) | 2:41.4 | William McCarty (JAM) | 2:42.4 | Bill Puddy (CAN) | 2:42.8 |
| 4×200 yd freestyle relay |
Canada George Larson George Burleigh Robert Hooper Bob Pirie |
8:40.6 | England Mostyn Ffrench-Williams Norman Wainwright Reginald Sutton Bob Leivers |
8:52.8 | Scotland George Anderson Henry Cunningham Merilees Chassels William Burns |
9:23.4 |
| 3×110 yd medley relay |
Canada Ben Gazell George Burleigh Albert Puddy |
3:11.2 | Scotland Merilees Chassels Norman Hamilton Willie Francis |
3:15.2 | England Alan Summers John Besford Mostyn Ffrench-Williams |
3:16.0 |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 yd freestyle | Phyllis Dewar (CAN) | 1:03.0 | Irene Pirie (CAN) | 1:03.6 | Jean McDowell (SCO) | 1:05.8 |
| 440 yd freestyle | Phyllis Dewar (CAN) | 5:45.6 | Jenny Maakal (SAF) | 5:53.0 | Irene Pirie (CAN) | 5:54.4 |
| 100 yd backstroke | Phyllis Harding (ENG) | 1:13.8 | Margot Hamilton (SCO) | 1:15.0 | Valerie Davies (WAL) | 1:18.2 |
| 200 yd breaststroke | Clare Dennis (AUS) | 2:50.2 | Phyllis Haslam (CAN) | 2:55.4 | Margery Hinton (ENG) | 2:58.6 |
| 4×110 yd freestyle relay |
Canada Phyllis Dewar Florence Humble Margaret Hutton Irene Pirie |
4:21.8 | South Africa Jenny Maakal Enid Hayward Kathleen Russell Molly Ryde |
4:34.0 | England Edna Hughes Beatrice Wolstenholme Olive Bartle Margery Hinton |
4:34.4 |
| 3×110 yd medley relay |
Canada Margaret Hutton Phyllis Haslam Phyllis Dewar |
3:42.0 | England Phyllis Harding Vera Kingston Edna Hughes |
3:43.0 | Scotland Jean McDowell Margot Hamilton Margaret McCullum |
3:50.0 |
All events were for men only.
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bantamweight | Edward Melrose (SCO) | Ted McKinley (CAN) | Joseph Reid (ENG) |
| Featherweight | Robert McNab (CAN) | Joe Nelson (ENG) | Murdoch White (SCO) |
| Lightweight | Dick Garrard (AUS) | G. E. North (ENG) | Howard Thomas (CAN) |
| Welterweight | Joe Schleimer (CAN) | William Fox (ENG) | Rashid Anwar (IND) |
| Middleweight | Terry Evans (CAN) | Stanley Bissell (ENG) | Robert Harcus (SCO) |
| Light heavyweight | Mick Cubbin (SAF) | Bernard Rowe (ENG) | Alex Watt (CAN) |
| Heavyweight | Jack Knight (AUS) | Pat Meehan (CAN) | Archie Dudgeon (SCO) |
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