Died 1916 (aged 31)
France Event(s) 800-5,000 m Sport Athletics | Weight 8 st 3 lb (52 kg) Height 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) Name Harold Wilson | |
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Born 21 January 1885 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Club Hallamshire Harriers, Sheffield | ||
Harold Allan Wilson (21 January 1885 – 7 July 1916) was an English runner. Born in Horncastle Lincolnshire he was a member of the Hallamshire Harriers in Sheffield. He competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London and won a team gold in the 3 mile and an individual silver in the 1500 metres race. He was the first man to run a sub four minute 1,500 metres, with a time of 3:59.8 in May 1908.
At the 1908 Olympics Wilson won his 1500 m semi-final in a time of 4:11.4; his time in the final was 4:03.6, fractions of a second behind Melvin Sheppard. He was also part of Britain's five-man gold medal-winning team in the three-mile race. He was Britain's fourth man home in fifth place overall. His team-mates were Archie Robertson, Norman Hallows, Joe Deakin and William Coales.
The following year, Wilson was in Queens, New York, competing alongside Sheppard. He spent the 1909 season in the U.S., and was considered one of the best mile runners. The same year he turned professional and raced in Australia and South Africa.
On 29 November 1915 he enlisted as a Private in the West Yorkshire Regiment, serving overseas. He was killed in action in France during the First World War.