Dennis Tucker
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British (English) |
| Born | 31 May 1928 Lambeth, London, England |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Athletics |
Event | Javelin throw |
| Club | Herne Hill Harriers |
Dennis Edwin Tucker (31 May 1928), is a former javelin thrower who competed for England at the Commonwealth Games.
Biography
Tucker was a junior champion of Surrey and studied modern languages at Jesus College, Oxford. He was a member of Herne Hill Harriers and broke the javelin throw club record in March 1950, throwing 187 feet.[1]
After winning the javelin for Oxford at the 1950 annual varsity match he won the Herne Hill Harriers senior championships.[2] He enjoyed a successful 1952, becoming only the sixth British athlete to throw over 200 feet[3] and finishing third behind Michael Denley and Dick Miller at the 1952 AAA Championships, which meant that he only just missed out on Olympic selection for the 1952 Summer Olympics.[4][5]
After Oxford, he took a teaching position at Caterham School[6] and was selected to represent the English team at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Canada,[7][8] where finished fourth in the javelin throw event.[9]
At the 1955 AAA Championships he finished runner-up behind Romanian Dumitru Zamfir but by virtue of being the highest placed British athlete, he was declared British champion.[10]
References
- ^ "Tucker Shatters Club Javelin Record". Streatham News. 10 March 1950. p. 5. Retrieved 25 April 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "High Standard Athletics". Norwood News. 5 May 1950. p. 8. Retrieved 25 April 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Relay Fiasco Film Aids Games Hopes". Sunday Mirror. 11 May 1952. p. 18. Retrieved 25 April 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists". National Union of Track Statisticians. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
- ^ "Results". The Scotsman. 23 June 1952. p. 7. Retrieved 28 September 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Half-mile ambition". Croydon Times. 4 June 1954. p. 12. Retrieved 28 September 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "England pick strong team for Empire Games". Halifax Evening Courier. 22 June 1954. Retrieved 18 September 2025 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "1954 Athletes". Team England. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
- ^ "Athletes and results". Commonwealth Games Federation. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
- ^ "AAA Championships (men)". GBR Athletics. Retrieved 28 September 2025.