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Chris Brasher

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Name
  
Chris Brasher

Role
  
Journalist

Organizations founded
  
Sweatshop


Chris Brasher Christopher Brasher CBE Athlete amp Brainchild of The

Born
  
21 August 1928 (
1928-08-21
)
Georgetown, Guyana

Occupation
  
athlete, sports journalist and co-founder of the London Marathon

Died
  
February 28, 2003, Chaddleworth, United Kingdom

Awards
  
British Academy Television Award for Best News Coverage

Olympic medals
  
Athletics at the 1956 Summer Olympics - Men's 3000 metre Steeplechase

Similar People
  
Ernst Larsen, Sandor Rozsnyoi, Bruno Coulais

Christopher William Brasher CBE (21 August 1928 – 28 February 2003) was a British track and field athlete, sports journalist and co-founder of the London Marathon.

Chris Brasher Book review Chris Brasher The Man Who Made The London

History

Chris Brasher Chris Brasher

Born in Georgetown, British Guiana, Brasher went to Rugby School and then St John's College, Cambridge.

Chris Brasher idailymailcoukipix20120419article2132098

On 6 May 1954, he acted as pacemaker for Roger Bannister when the latter ran the first sub-four-minute mile at Iffley Road Stadium in Oxford. Brasher paced Bannister for the first two laps, while his friend Chris Chataway paced the third. Two years later, at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Brasher finished first in the 3,000 metres steeplechase with a time of 8 minutes 41.2 seconds, but was disqualified for allegedly interfering with another runner, Ernst Larsen of Norway. The following day, after an investigation, he was reinstated as gold medallist. Brasher had been celebrating for several hours before the delayed medal ceremony, and later claimed to have been “the only Olympic champion to be totally and absolutely slaughtered when he received a medal”.

Chris Brasher Christopher Brasher CBE Athlete Brainchild of The London

He was one of the pioneers of orienteering in Britain and can claim the first public mention of the sport in an article in The Observer in 1957:

Chris Brasher Christopher Brasher CBE Athlete Brainchild of The London
"I have just taken part, for the first time, in one of the best sports in the world. It is hard to know what to call it. The Norwegians call it 'orientation'..."
Chris Brasher Chris Brasher Olympic Champion and cofounder of the London

He had distinguished careers in print journalism, as sports editor for The Observer newspaper, and in broadcasting, as a reporter for the Tonight programme.

Chris Brasher Chris Brasher 1928 2003 Find A Grave Memorial

He founded Chris Brasher's Sporting Emporium in 1971; this later became Sweatshop. In 1978, he designed the innovative Brasher Boot – a walking boot with the comfort of a running shoe. In their time these were amongst the best products, but declined in quality, were merged with Berghaus under Pentland ownership in 2014, and were finally discontinued before 2017.

Chris Brasher Heritage

In 1981 John Disley and Brasher founded the London Marathon. In 1983 he became the second president of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races, an office which he held until 1987.

Also in 1983 Brasher partnered with his longtime friend John Disley to found Fleetfoot Limited in Lancaster, England. Fleetfoot distributed The Brasher Boot and other sporting goods to retailers. Fleetfoot acquired the rights to be the UK distributor of Reebok and subsequently traded as Reebok UK before becoming a subsidiary of the Pentland Group in 1988.

After the acquisition by Pentland, Brasher remained active in the company as chairman of the board. Reebok UK was sold to Reebok International in 1990 when Pentland Group sold its 55% ownership of Reebok United States and Reebok International.

Brasher was married to tennis champion Shirley Brasher née Bloomer.

Brasher was awarded the CBE in 1996. He was awarded the Royal Scottish Geographical Society's Livingstone Medal in 2002.

In 2003, he died at his home in Chaddleworth, Berkshire, after struggling for several months against pancreatic cancer.

References

Chris Brasher Wikipedia