London Olympiades Athletic Club
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| Founded | 1921 |
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| Location | London, England |
London Olympiades Athletic Club is a British athletics club based in London. It was the first women's athletics club formed in he United Kingdom. The club held championship meetings at Battersea Park.
History
[edit]
In 1921, Alice Milliat of France organised the 1921 Women's Olympiad, which was the first international women's sports event, a 5-day multi-sport event held on 24–31 March at Monte Carlo.[1] Consequently, on their return journey some of the English athletes decided to form an athletics club.[2]
The pioneering action resulted in the formation of London Olympiades Athletic Club, the first women only club in the United Kingdom.[2] The club practiced on Tuesday and Friday evenings at the Paddington Recreation Ground in the summer months and raced cross country in the winter months.[3]
Rival clubs such as Polytechnic Ladies' Athletic Club, Middlesex Ladies' Athletic Club and Kensington Ladies' Athletic Clubs soon followed.[4] They all became members of the newly formed Women's Amateur Athletic Association and at the inaugural 1923 WAAA Championships, London Olympiades dominated the Championships[5] and were a major force in women's athletics for many years.
During the 1920s and 1930s, the club provided several athletes for the Women's Olympiad and Women's World Games (the equivalent (although much smaller) to the men's Olympic Games) at the time.[6]
After World War II many women joined clubs that were open to both men and women or in some cases clubs merged but London Olympiades remained a women's only club. During the 1960s, the club continued to produce champions such as Mary Bignal.[7]
The club moved from Alperton Stadium to West London Stadium in 1968[8] and in 1970 was still ranked the number one women's club in the United Kingdom.[9]
By 1980 the club was struggling with membership[10] and from the mid-1980s was only producing long-distance runners such as Leslie Watson.
Olympic (or Olympiad) athletes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "The Women's Olympic Games". Comité Olympique Monégasque. Retrieved 5 March 2025.
- ^ a b "The Women's Amateur Athletic Association – the 1920s". Run Young 50. Retrieved 5 March 2025.
- ^ "London Women Athletes". Daily Mirror. 18 May 1922. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "London Women Athletes". West London Observer. 26 October 1923. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Women's A.A.A. Championships". Weekly Dispatch (London). 19 August 1923. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Women's Olympiad". Birmingham Daily Gazette. 5 August 1924. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Mary Bignal's Double". Birmingham Daily Post. 25 May 1960. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Remembering Lillian". Harrow Observer. 5 January 1971. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Godiva still lag in ratings". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 14 March 1970. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Olympiades must look to youngsters". Acton Gazette. 24 July 1980. Retrieved 6 March 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "London Olympiades, London (GBR)". Olympedia. Retrieved 6 March 2025.