Bruce William Field (born 22 January 1947) is an Australian former athlete who competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games. He specialised in sprint races, hurdles and the long jump.

Bruce Field
Personal information
Birth nameBruce William Field
Born (1947-01-22) 22 January 1947 (age 77)
Melbourne, Australia
Height1.77 m (5 ft 9+12 in)
Weight72 kg (159 lb)
Sport
Country Australia
SportAthletics
EventSprint / Hurdles / Long jump
ClubSt. Stephens Harriers
Medal record
Men's Athletics
British Commonwealth Games
Silver medal – second place 1974 Christchurch 400 m hurdles

Field was born in Melbourne and trained at St. Stephens Harriers in Mount Waverley.

Career

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At the 1972 Summer Olympics he took part in both the long jump and 400 metres hurdles.[1] The only Australian in the long jump competition, he finished in 15th position with a leap of 7.76m, finishing 3 cm short of a place in the final. He was in the fourth heat for the 400 metres hurdles, which was won by eventual gold medalist John Akii-Bua. Field placed fourth and was eliminated from the competition.[2]

In 1974 he was the national champion in the 400 metres hurdles and in the same year won a silver medal in the 400 metres hurdles event, behind England's Alan Pascoe, at the British Commonwealth Games in Christchurch. His time of 49.32 set in Christchurch remained a national record for 20 years. He also had top five finishes in the 400 metres and long jump.[3][4]

Post-athletics

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While competing in athletics, Field also studied for a PhD at the University of Melbourne.[5]

He is now an Associate Professor in the Monash University Department of Mechanical Engineering.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Australian athletes named for Munich Olympics". The Canberra Times. 28 March 1972. p. 32. Retrieved 26 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ "Munich Games: Poor start for Australia in athletics". The Canberra Times. 1 September 1972. p. 18. Retrieved 26 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "Games detail". The Canberra Times. 28 January 1974. p. 8. Retrieved 26 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "Commonwealth Games results". The Canberra Times. 30 January 1974. p. 27. Retrieved 26 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ Harrison, Greta (21 November 2011). "MSE alumni in the sporting history books". The Melbourne Engineer. University of Melbourne. Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  6. ^ "The sixth sense - Science". The Age. 7 June 2004. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
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