Judy Grinham

Judy Grinham
Medal record
Women's swimming
Competitor for  Great Britain
Olympics Games
Gold 1956 Melbourne 100 m backstroke
European Championships
Gold 1958 Budapest 100 m backstroke
Silver 1958 Budapest 4×100 m freestyle
Bronze 1958 Budapest 100 m freestyle
Bronze 1958 Budapest 4×100 m medley
Competitor for  England
Commonwealth Games
Gold 1958 Cardiff 110 yd backstroke
Gold 1958 Cardiff 4x110 yd medley relay
Bronze 1958 Cardiff 4×110 yd freestyle

Judy Grinham, MBE (born 5 March 1939) is a former British competitive swimmer, Olympic gold medallist, and former world record-holder.

Biography

Grinham was born in the London suburb of Hampstead and grew up in Neasden. She married Pat Rowley[1] in Neasden in 1960, in St. Catherine's Church and they had two children, Keith and Alison.

Grinham competed in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, winning the 100-metre backstroke in 1 minute, 12.9 seconds, a world record. She became the first Briton to win an Olympic swimming gold since Lucy Morton in 1924.

Grinham competed in the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales, and won the 100-metre backstroke in 1:11.9. She went on to win a second gold medal as a member of the winning British team in the 4x100-metre medley team at the 1958 European Championships in Budapest, Hungary, and won an individual gold in the 100-metre backstroke. She became the first athlete in any sport to hold Olympic, Commonwealth and European gold medals at the same time.

She was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honour Swimmer" in 1981.[2]

In 2007, she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen's Birthday Honours list, 50 years after winning gold in Melbourne.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Children's Newspaper" (PDF). Lookandlearn.com. 27 January 1962. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  2. ↑ International Swimming Hall of Fame, Honourees, Judy Grinham (GBR). Retrieved 17 Marc 2015.

External links