Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Men's athletics | ||
Representing Canada | ||
British Empire Games | ||
1934 London | Javelin |
Robert Samuel Dixon (30 December 1909 – 11 January 1941) was a Canadian track and field athlete who competed in the javelin throw.
In a comparatively weak field, he won the gold medal at the 1934 British Empire Games ahead of the local opposition in London, throwing 60.02 m (196 ft 10+3⁄4 in) to beat South Africa's Harry Hart (who was winner of the shot put and discus that year). [1] [2] [3] [4]
At national level, he won one javelin title at the Canadian Track and Field Championships, topping the podium in 1934. [5]
Dixon spent time in the Vancouver Police Force [6] and played lacrosse with the New Westminster Salmonbellies with whom he competed for the Mann Cup in 1930. He also coached the Canadian lacrosse team at the 1932 Summer Olympics. [7]
At one point, he enrolled in a school for machine gunners near Los Angeles and joined a group of California-based mercenaries and headed to China. [7]
Dixon did two tours as a pilot in China, and allegedly became the right-hand man of influential Chinese warlord Zhang Zuolin, according to newspaper reports. [7]
Dixon's time in China also included a stint with the Chinese Airforce during the Sino-Japanese War. He returned to Canada when war was declared in Canada and immediately enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. [6]
Serving as a test pilot in the RCAF, he died in an airplane crash in Grosse Isle, Manitoba during World War II. [8] He was later inducted into the Richmond Sports Wall of Fame. [9]
Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Men's athletics | ||
Representing Canada | ||
British Empire Games | ||
1934 London | Javelin |
Robert Samuel Dixon (30 December 1909 – 11 January 1941) was a Canadian track and field athlete who competed in the javelin throw.
In a comparatively weak field, he won the gold medal at the 1934 British Empire Games ahead of the local opposition in London, throwing 60.02 m (196 ft 10+3⁄4 in) to beat South Africa's Harry Hart (who was winner of the shot put and discus that year). [1] [2] [3] [4]
At national level, he won one javelin title at the Canadian Track and Field Championships, topping the podium in 1934. [5]
Dixon spent time in the Vancouver Police Force [6] and played lacrosse with the New Westminster Salmonbellies with whom he competed for the Mann Cup in 1930. He also coached the Canadian lacrosse team at the 1932 Summer Olympics. [7]
At one point, he enrolled in a school for machine gunners near Los Angeles and joined a group of California-based mercenaries and headed to China. [7]
Dixon did two tours as a pilot in China, and allegedly became the right-hand man of influential Chinese warlord Zhang Zuolin, according to newspaper reports. [7]
Dixon's time in China also included a stint with the Chinese Airforce during the Sino-Japanese War. He returned to Canada when war was declared in Canada and immediately enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. [6]
Serving as a test pilot in the RCAF, he died in an airplane crash in Grosse Isle, Manitoba during World War II. [8] He was later inducted into the Richmond Sports Wall of Fame. [9]