Today we have two milestone birthdays among the Oldest Olympians so, yet again, we are combining them into a single blog post rather than choosing between them!

(Lightbourn-Jones, pictured on page 86 of the April 28, 1957 edition of the Hartford Courant)

First, we are wishing a happy 96^th birthday to Phyllis Lightbourn-Jones, the oldest living Olympian from Bermuda! Lightbourn-Jones represented her nation in five events across two editions of the Games – in 1948 and 1952 – but did not reach the final round of any of them. She later married an American Naval Officer and moved to Connecticut, where, in 1957, she volunteered to coach at the United States Coast Guard Academy, where her husband was teaching chemistry. When her offer was accepted, she became the first woman, at the age of 28, to coach track and field at an institution of higher education. She now resides in Naples, Florida.

Secondly, we are wishing Giuseppe Moioli, the oldest Olympic rowing champion and Italian Olympic medalist, a happy 97^th birthday! Moioli won gold in the coxless fours at the 1948 London Games, just missed the podium in fourth in 1956 Melbourne, and also competed in 1952 Helsinki. He was a five-time European champion in this event between 1947 and 1956, and also won with the eights in 1958, in addition to a coxless fours gold medal at the 1955 Mediterranean Games. He later worked as a coach.

Recently, we have become aware of three deaths among Olympians born in 1925. Today we wanted to cover them in a single blog post, as all three were titleholders among the Oldest Olympians.

(Amit Singh Bakshi, pictured at All India Runners Motivation)

First, Indian filed hockey player Amit Singh Bakshi, born September 17, 1925, died June 22 at the age of 98. Bakshi represented his country in the tournament at the 1956 Melbourne Games, which India won. He later became a commercial pilot and, at the time of his death, was the oldest living Indian Olympian and oldest living field hockey medalist. In the former category, the new titleholder is another gold medal-winning field hockey player, Raghbir Lal, born November 15, 1929. He was also part of the tournament-winning team in 1956, and took gold in 1952 as well, which additionally makes him the oldest living Olympic champion in field hockey. The oldest living medalist in that sport, however, is Anthony Nunn of Great Britain, born May 24, 1927, who took bronze in 1952.

Then, Russian speed skater Yury Sergeyev, born July 16, 1925, died July 29 at the age of 99. Sergeyev represented his country in the 500 metres event at the 1956 Cortina d’Ampezzo Olympics and just missed the podium in fourth. He set a world record in that event in 1952 and improved it three times over the next four years. He retired shortly after the Games and later became a coach. Sergeyev was the oldest survivor of the 1956 Cortina d’Ampezzo Games and the oldest living Olympic speed skater. The former distinction now goes to Austrian ice hockey player Adolf Hafner, born January 5, 1926. The latter now belongs to Henry Howes of Great Britain, born October 11, 1928, who competed in three events at the 1948 St. Moritz Games.

Finally, Oldest Olympians has been informed that South African rower Don Dyke-Wells, born February 13, 1925, died March 20, 2023. Dyke-Wells was a member of the South African coxless fours squad at the 1952 Helsinki Games, which was eliminated in the round one repêchage. This was the culmination of his international career, and he soon retired from active competition in order to focus on his vocation. By profession, he was an architect, industrial designer, and teacher, most notably at the KwaZulu-Natal Institute for Architecture, although he also ran his own independent firm. At the time of his death, he was the oldest living South African Olympian; that title now goes to track athlete Daphne Robb-Hasenjäger, born July 2, 1929, who competed in two editions of the Games, 1948 and 1952, and took silver in the 100 metres at the latter Olympics.