Harry Kerr

Edward Henry ("Harry") Kerr (January 28, 1879 – May 17, 1951) was a New Zealand athlete, who created sports history on July 14, 1908 by becoming the first New Zealander to win an Olympic medal. He took the bronze medal in the 3500 m walk at the 1908 Summer Olympics held in London, Great Britain after a scare when he almost didn't make the start line in time for the race.

Born in Taranaki, Kerr always had unusual sports ability. He was a champion shooter, loved rugby, and was good at most track and field events. But walking particularly caught the attention of the 1.93 m long Kerr. As was often the custom at the turn of the 20th century, he bypassed the major meets of the day to compete professionally, and was a regular at the big New Year's Day pro meet at the Caledonian Ground in Dunedin, where he conceded massive handicaps.

Kerr eventually decided to turn amateur, which necessitated standing down from all competition for two years. He took his two-year hiatus in 1905–1906, and dedicated himself to clearing bush on the family farm at Tariki, near Stratford. Once eligible for championship meets, he quickly stamped his class and secured his Olympic selection by winning Australasian one and three-mile titles at Hobart in early 1908.

Kerr returned from London a national celebrity and continued to dominate the national scene, winning three further New Zealand titles in 1911–1912. His greatest walk was at the national champs in Wellington in 1911 when he won the three-mile race in 21min 36.6s, which remained the national record until 1946.

Kerr also enjoyed great success at the Australasian champs, winning two titles at both the 1909 and 1911 meetings. He virtually retired in 1912, marrying Isobelle in 1913 and serving in Europe during the First World War.

But one of the highlights of his career was yet to come. The national champs were held in nearby Wanganui in 1925 and Kerr, by then 46, decided to make a comeback. He found it difficult to regain his fitness, but worked at it, training by walking up and down the railway track near his farm. After ruining a pair of boots on the rough terrain, he then cleared a circular track around his house and did his training there.

Kerr's diligence was rewarded when he won the one and three-mile titles at the nationals. The "New Zealand Herald" headlined its report "Wonderful Performance For Man Of His Age" and described his feat as "little short of marvellous".

Kerr continued to follow sport avidly, even if it sometimes left him not enough time to devote to his farm. He represented Taranaki as a lawn bowler and was a regular attender at big rep rugby matches in Taranaki until his death, from cancer, in 1951.

On 13 July 2008 to commemorate the first Olympic Games medal by a New Zealander (actually on 14 July 1908) the Harry Kerr Centennial Walking Relay was held at Sovereign Stadium, Mairangi Bay, Auckland. Two events were held, a 5x10km relay and a 3500m individual event. [ [http://www.athletics.org.nz/Article.aspx?Mode=1&ID=3772 Athletics New Zealand: Harry Kerr Centennial Walking Relay] ] [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10521094 New Zealand Herald: Take a walk back in time to our first medal] ] A shield for the winning team was presented by Kerr's daughter-in-law. [http://stuff.co.nz/auckland/4614301a22400.html North Shore Times: First Olympic medal celebrated] ] [http://newspix.nzherald.co.nz/detail?productId=100708NZHBPBRONZE1.jpgPicture of Rose Sheat, Kerr's daughter-in-law, with Shield] ] It is proposed that this will be an annual event.

References

External links

* [http://www.olympic.org.nz/Athletes/AthleteProfile.aspx?Print=&ContactID=856&id=3774 Biography at New Zealand Olympic Committee website]
* [http://www.racewalkingauckland.org/index.php?pr=Harry_Kerr_Centennial_Relay Racewalking Auckland: The Harry Kerr Centennial Relay]