Cliff Simpson (athlete)

Clifford Simpson (born 1927/1928)[2] is a former New Zealand middle-distance athlete who represented his country at the 1950 British Empire Games. He also played representative rugby union for South Otago.

Cliff Simpson
Personal information
Birth nameClifford Simpson
Born1927/1928 (age 92–93)
Temuka, New Zealand
Sport
CountryNew Zealand
SportTrack and field
ClubSt Kilda Harrier and Amateur Athletic Club[1]
Achievements and titles
National finals880 yards champion (1950)

Early life

Born in Temuka,[3] Simpson was educated at King's High School in Dunedin, where he played fullback in the school's 1st XV rugby team, and was prominent in athletics, winning the intermediate athletics championship in 1944.[4][5][6]

Athletics

Simpson came to national attention when he won the New Zealand under-19 880 yards title, representing Otago, in 1946, recording a time of 2:00.6,[7] and was second in the same event the following year.[1] He went on to win the national senior title over the same distance in 1950; his winning time was 1:54.4.[7]

Simpson competed in the men's 880 yards and 1 mile at the 1950 British Empire Games in Auckland.[3] He placed fourth in his heat of the 880 yards,[8] and progressed to the final, in which he finished sixth in a time of 1:56.0.[9] He ran 4:26.6 to finish sixth in his heat of the 1 mile, and did not advance further.[10]

Rugby union

A fullback, Simpson was a member of the Toko Rugby Football Club in Milton.[11] He played for the South Otago representative rugby union team between at least 1947 and 1950.[12][13][14]

Later life

Simpson worked as a stock agent.[12] He moved to the Manawatu in the early 1950s, living first in Feilding, and later at Halcombe.[12]

References
  1. "Fortieth anniversary". Otago Daily Times. 26 June 1947. p. 2. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  2. "Spotlight on sport". Evening Star. 31 October 1945. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  3. "Clifford Simpson". New Zealand Olympic Committee. 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  4. "High school rugby". Evening Star. 26 July 1945. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  5. "School year ends". Evening Star. 16 December 1944. p. 8. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  6. "NZ senior sports representatives". KHS Old Boys' Association. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  7. Hollings, Stephen (December 2016). "National champions 1887–2016" (PDF). Athletics New Zealand. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  8. "Athletics results". Otago Daily Times. 6 February 1950. p. 5. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  9. "Further Empire records are broken". Otago Daily Times. 8 February 1950. p. 8. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  10. "The results". Otago Daily Times. 10 February 1950. p. 8. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  11. "South Otago rugby". Otago Daily Times. 24 April 1950. p. 2. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  12. "Manawatu conversations: Cliff Simpson pt 2". Manawatu People's Radio. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  13. "Milton: representative football". Otago Daily Times. 30 September 1947. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  14. "Topp Cup match". Otago Daily Times. 21 August 1950. p. 8. Retrieved 11 May 2019.


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