Last 30 March 2022 marked the 70th death anniversary of Manly swimmer, Harry Hay, who competed at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. Discover his journey from being an Olympic medalist to becoming one of the most celebrated swimming coaches in Australia.
Born in 1893, Harry Maitland Hay was a member of the North Sydney Swimming Club. He won the NSW Junior 100-yard championship during its 1908-09 season. After serving in the military during WW1, Harry competed in the 1920 Olympic Games.
Whilst he didn’t win any medal in the individual 100-metre freestyle and 400-metre freestyle events, he however bagged the silver medal in the 4 × 200-metre freestyle relay. He was joined by Frank Beaurepaire, Ivan Steadman and Billy Herald in the Australian team that swam against the eventual gold medalist, the United States team. It was at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics where the first Australia-only Olympic team competed and won two silver medals and a bronze.
at Boomerang Camp, Freshwater
Photo Credit: Freshwater Surf Life Saving Club / freshwaterslsc.com
Upon his return, Harry won the Australian 100-yard championship in 1922, his lone national title. He would then transition into professional coaching, grooming some of Australia’s exceptional swimmers including Andrew ‘Boy’ Charlton, Arthur Beard, Noel Ryan, Bill Kendall, Robin Biddulph, Warren Boyd, Garrick Agnew and Rex Aubrey
Harry attended each subsequent Olympic Games from 1924 to 1948 at his own expense, working as an unofficial swimming coach under the guise of a masseur, because at the time, the Olympic code prohibited the employment of professional coaches.
Although he was officially appointed as a massage therapist, the Australian team manager paid him $10 a week to train ‘Boy’ Charlton and Tom Boast. It was Charlton, however, who gave him his first taste of the limelight as a coach as the Charlton broke one record after another at the 1924, 1928 and 1932 Olympic Games, under Harry’s guidance.
A month before leaving for Helsinki to coach Australian Rex Aubrey, who would be competing at the 1952 Summer Olympics, he suffered a heart attack and died at age 59 in St Ronan’s Hospital, Manly. He was survived by his wife, Mary Thorp, whom he married in 1949.
