Athletics at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games
# Athletics at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games

At the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, the athletics events were held at Perry Lakes Stadium in Perth, Western Australia. The stadium, set in the suburb of Floreat, was purpose-built for the competition. A total of 31 events were contested, of which 21 by male and 10 by female athletes. The competition was affected by hot weather and soldiers from the Australian Army were called upon to supply athletes with water throughout the competition. Heavy wind also affected the programme, with the sprints and jumps most affected by the conditions.

The 1962 Games saw the reintroduction of the men's 3000 metres steeplechase and the women's 880 yards – events which had both been absent for four editions, having previously been held at the 1934 British Empire Games. Kenyan Seraphino Antao won double gold in the sprints, an achievement which marked a breakthrough in the sport for his country. Dorothy Hyman completed the same feat on the women's side. Peter Snell won gold medals in both the 880 yds and the mile run. In the men's 3 miles race, Ronald Clarke found himself outdone by reigning Olympics 5000 metres champion Murray Halberg. Women's thrower Valerie Young built upon her 1958 shot put gold with victories in both the shot put and discus throw.

## Medal summary

### Men

| Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 100 yards details | Seraphino Antao Kenya | 9.50 | Tom Robinson Bahamas | 9.63 | Michael Cleary Australia | 9.78 |
| 220 yards details | Seraphino Antao Kenya | 21.28 | Dave Jones England | 21.59 | Johan Du Preez Rhodesia and Nyasaland | 21.70 |
| 440 yards details | George Kerr Jamaica | 46.74 | Robbie Brightwell England | 46.86 | Amos Omolo Uganda | 46.88 |
| 880 yards details | Peter Snell New Zealand | 1:47.64 GR | George Kerr Jamaica | 1:47.90 | Tony Blue Australia | 1:48.99 |
| 1 mile details | Peter Snell New Zealand | 4:04.58 | John Davies New Zealand | 4:05.12 | Terry Sullivan Rhodesia and Nyasaland | 4:06.61 |
| 3 miles details | Murray Halberg New Zealand | 13:34.15 | Ronald Clarke Australia | 13:35.92 | Bruce Kidd Canada | 13:36.37 |
| 6 miles details | Bruce Kidd Canada | 28:26.13 GR | Dave Power Australia | 28:33.53 | John Merriman Wales | 28:40.26 |
| 120 yards hurdles details | Ghulam Raziq Pakistan | 14.34 | Dave Prince Australia | 14.48 | Laurie Taitt England | 14.81 |
| 440 yards hurdles details | Ken Roche Australia | 51.5 | Kimaru Songok Kenya | 51.9 | Benson Ishiepai Uganda | 52.3 |
| 3000 metres steeplechase details | Trevor Vincent Australia | 8:43.4 GR | Maurice Herriott England | 8:45.0 | Ron Blackney Australia | 9:00.6 |
| 4 × 110 yards relay details | England (ENG) Alf Meakin David Jones Len Carter Peter Radford | 40.62 | Ghana (GHA) Bonner Mends Bukari Bashiru Michael Okantey Michael Ahey | 40.74 | Wales (WAL) David England Nick Whitehead Ron Jones Berwyn Jones | 40.80 |
| 4 × 440 yards relay details | Jamaica (JAM) George Kerr Laurie Khan Malcolm Spence Mel Spence | 3:10.2 | England (ENG) Adrian Metcalfe Barry Jackson Robert Setti Robbie Brightwell | 3:11.2 | Ghana (GHA) Ebenezer Quartey Frederick Owusu James Addy John Asare-Antwi | 3:12.3 |
| Marathon details | Brian Kilby England | 2:21:17 | Dave Power Australia | 2:22:16 | Rod Bonella Australia | 2:24:07 |
| High jump details | Percy Hobson Australia | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) GR | Chilla Porter Australia | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | Anton Norris Barbados | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Pole vault details | Trevor Bickle Australia | 14 ft 9 in (4.50 m) | Danie Burger Rhodesia and Nyasaland | 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m) | Ross Filshie Australia | 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m) |
| Long jump details | Michael Ahey Ghana | 26 ft 5 in (8.05 m) | Dave Norris New Zealand | 25 ft 4+3⁄4 in (7.74 m) | Wellesley Clayton Jamaica | 25 ft 4+1⁄4 in (7.73 m) |
| Triple jump details | Ian Tomlinson Australia | 53 ft 2 in (16.21 m) | John Baguley Australia | 52 ft 9+1⁄4 in (16.08 m) | Fred Alsop England | 52 ft 7 in (16.03 m) |
| Shot put details | Martyn Lucking England | 59 ft 4 in (18.08 m) | Mike Lindsay Scotland | 59 ft 2+1⁄2 in (18.05 m) | Dave Steen Canada | 58 ft 8+3⁄4 in (17.90 m) |
| Discus throw details | Warwick Selvey Australia | 185 ft 3+1⁄2 in (56.48 m) | Mike Lindsay Scotland | 172 ft 6 in (52.58 m) | John Sheldrick England | 166 ft 3 in (50.67 m) |
| Hammer throw details | Howard Payne England | 202 ft 3 in (61.65 m) | Dick Leffler Australia | 196 ft 3+1⁄2 in (59.83 m) | Robert Brown Australia | 189 ft 1+1⁄2 in (57.65 m) |
| Javelin throw details | Alf Mitchell Australia | 256 ft 3 in (78.11 m) GR | Colin Smith England | 255 ft 8+1⁄2 in (77.94 m) | Nick Birks Australia | 246 ft 3+1⁄2 in (75.07 m) |

### Women

| Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 100 yards details | Dorothy Hyman England | 11.2 | Doreen Porter New Zealand | 11.3 | Brenda Cox Australia | 11.4 |
| 220 yards details | Dorothy Hyman England | 24.00 | Joyce Bennett Australia | 24.21 | Margaret Burvill Australia | 24.42 |
| 880 yards details | Dixie Willis Australia | 2:03.85 GR | Marise Chamberlain New Zealand | 2:05.66 | Joy Jordan England | 2:05.96 |
| 80 metres hurdles details | Pam Kilborn Australia | 11.07 | Betty Moore England | 11.40 | Avis McIntosh New Zealand | 11.47 |
| 4 × 110 yards relay details | Australia (AUS) Brenda Cox Betty Cuthbert Glenys Beasley Joyce Bennett | 46.71 | England (ENG) Ann Packer Dorothy Hyman Daphne Arden Betty Moore | 46.81 | New Zealand (NZL) Avis McIntosh Doreen Porter Molly Cowan Nola Bond | 46.93 |
| High jump details | Robyn Woodhouse Australia | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | Helen Frith Australia | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | Michele Mason Australia | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Long jump details | Pam Kilborn Australia | 20 ft 6+3⁄4 in (6.27 m) | Helen Frith Australia | 20 ft 5+3⁄4 in (6.24 m) | Janet Knee Australia | 20 ft 1+1⁄4 in (6.13 m) |
| Shot put details | Valerie Young New Zealand | 49 ft 11+1⁄2 in (15.23 m) | Jean Roberts Australia | 47 ft 7+1⁄2 in (14.52 m) | Suzanne Allday England | 44 ft 6 in (13.56 m) |
| Discus throw details | Valerie Young New Zealand | 164 ft 8+1⁄2 in (50.20 m) | Rosslyn Williams Australia | 153 ft 1 in (46.66 m) | Mary McDonald Australia | 151 ft 8 in (46.23 m) |
| Javelin throw details | Sue Platt England | 164 ft 10+1⁄2 in (50.25 m) | Rosemary Morgan England | 162 ft 9+1⁄2 in (49.62 m) | Anna Pazera Australia | 159 ft 8+1⁄2 in (48.68 m) |

## Medal table

* Host nation (Australia)

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Australia* | 12 | 12 | 13 | 37 |
| 2 | England | 7 | 8 | 5 | 20 |
| 3 | New Zealand | 5 | 4 | 2 | 11 |
| 4 | Jamaica | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | Kenya | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | Ghana | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 7 | Canada | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 8 | Pakistan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 | Scotland | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | Rhodesia and Nyasaland | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 11 | Bahamas | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Uganda | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 12 | Wales | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 14 | Barbados | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (14 entries) | Totals (14 entries) | 31 | 31 | 31 | 93 |
