Today on Oldest Olympians, we are keeping up the momentum on reviewing those Olympians who were last known living in 2012. Today’s focus is on the remaining Olympians who competed at the 1948 London Games.
Aram Boghossian – Member of Brazil’s swimming delegations to the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics
Aram Boghossian, born November 19, 1929, represented Brazil in four swimming events across two editions of the Games, 1948 and 1952, but did not reach the podium in any of them. He did, however, win a silver medal as a member of the 4×200 metres freestyle relay at the 1951 Pan American Games. He continued to swim at the masters’ level and, by career, was an engineer. We suspect that he is still alive, but the last official confirmation that we have seen comes from 2012.
Bruce Bourke – Member of Australia’s swimming delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Bruce Bourke, born February 5, 1929, represented Australia in two swimming events at the 1948 London Games and was also a reserve with the 4×200 metres freestyle relay. He was also a member of the water polo team that won the demonstration event at the 1950 British Empire Games. His son Glenn became an Olympic sailor in 1992. Bruce made headlines in 2012 when it was revealed that he had stolen an Olympic flag in 1948, but we have not heard anything from him since.
(Fred Daigle, pictured at his daughter’s blog)
Fred Daigle – Member of Canada’s boxing delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Fred Daigle, born September 9, 1930, represented Canada in bantamweight boxing at the 1948 London Games, where he was eliminated in his first bout. His daughter posted a blog entry about his Olympic journey in 2012, noting that he was still alive, but we have not had an update since.
(Gerti Fesl, pictured at noe)
Gerti Fesl – Member of Austria’s gymnastics teams at the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics
Gerti Fesl, born September 29, 1931, represented Austria in gymnastics at two editions of the Games, finishing sixth and tenth in the team all-around in 1948 and 1952 respectively. Individually, she had her best finish of 66th in the uneven bars in 1952. She was the national individual all-around champion in 1955 and 1958 and was featured in a 2012 article, but we have not seen any news since.
Cees Gravesteijn – Member of the Netherlands’ canoeing delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Cees Gravesteijn, born April 21, 1928, represented the Netherlands in canoeing’s K-2 1000 competition, where he finished in sixth. This is all that we know about him, and our last update of his being alive comes from a 2012 article that is no longer available.
(Vivian King, pictured at the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame)
Vivian King – Member of Canada’s swimming delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Vivian King, born April 4, 1930 (although some sources suggest 1931), represented Canada in two events at the 1948 London Games, being eliminated in the semi-finals of the 400 metres freestyle and the opening round of the 4×100 metres freestyle relay. She won multiple national championships, but turned professional prior to the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. We were informed that she was still alive in 2012, but we have not seen any indication that this has been the case since then.
Klara Post – Member of the Dutch gymnastics squad at the 1948 London Olympics
Klara Post, born July 5, 1926, was a member of the Dutch gymnastics team that placed fifth in the all-around event at the 1948 London Games. She was mentioned as still being alive in the same 2012 article that also provided an update for Cees Gravesteijn.
Ilse Steinegger – Member of Austria’s athletics delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Ilse Steinegger, born August 8, 1925, represented Austria in the high and long jumps at the 1948 London Games, placing seventh and tenth respectively. Domestically, she was the national champion in those events in 1943, 1947, and 1949. She was listed as still being alive in a 2012 update on Austrian Olympians, but we have not heard anything about her since.
Üner Teoman – Member of Turkey’s athletics delegation to the 1948 London Olympics
Üner Teoman, born October 10, 1932, represented Turkey in the 100 metres track event at the 1948 London Games, where she was eliminated in round one. She was a pioneer in Turkish athletics and was still alive in 2012, but we are not certain if that remains the case.
We still have more names to cover, but even with these short biographies, we think that we have done enough for one post. We hope as always, however, that you will join us for the next round!