Archives

Sporting Personalities by Ken de Joodt

When this calculated question was posed by a smart aleck "-Eddie, if you were given a chance to live your life all over again, who would you choose to be? A prince, a king, or the Pope, or some other celebrity?", the prompt snap-back answer was Eddie Gray.

That in a nutshell, describes the calibre and modesty of such an illustrious, popular, distinguished sports personality, Sri Lanka has ever produced. His list of sporting and career achievements are so extensive, it would run into volumes of interesting material for reading!

Eddie Gray was a household name in the past and it continues to be so, in many circles of sport and society. Even though he is now domiciled in Melbourne, Australia, with his lovely, hospitable wife Yvonne, (since 1979, when Eddie emigrated from Sri Lanka), he yet fondly reminisces about Sri Lanka, as a delightful, beautiful, picturesque island and classes it as the friendliest nation, whose people are graceful and compassionate. He just loves coming back to Sri Lanka!

Having served in the Ceylon Police Force from 1937, where he became the first Ceylonese Inspector to be in command of the Ceylon Mounted Police, after a training period with the London Metropolitan Police in England, he launched into a variety of sports. Born in Nuwara Eliya on 21st Dec. 1918, he had his education at Royal College, where he excelled beyond expectation, as Boxing captain, Rugger captain and Athletics captain - apart from being the Head Prefect of the College. He also captained the Ceylonese Combined Schools Rugby XV in 1937 and went to play for the CR and FC in later years.

Eddie was felicitated last week at Royal College and was invited by the Principal H. L. B. Gomes, to address the General Assembly. It was in 1948, that Eddie Gray was selected to represent Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) at the Olympics in London, to box in the light weight division. As a brilliant scientific boxer, he narrowly lost to the British boxer Latham, who went onto win the Gold medal. During the numerous years of participation in Sri Lanka sports, Eddie played Rugby, Golf, Hockey, and expanded into swimming, water polo, motor-racing, rifle shooting, horse-racing and polo and then became a life-saver, apart from "knocking-out" his opponents in the Boxing ring!

In 1950, Eddie Gray boxed in the Commonwealth Games held in Auckland, New Zealand and was later appointed Manager of the Ceylon teams to the Olympic Games in 1964, Commonwealth Games in Perth 1962 and in 1974 to Christ Church, New Zealand. At the Asian Games he was the Manager for Ceylon in 1963 and 1965.

His proud achievement is that he is the only Sri Lankan ever to be elected to the Executive Committee of a world controlling body in any Olympic Sport - and that was from 1966 to 1970 and again the 1974. In 1990, he was conferred the title Honourary Life Member of the Judges and Referees Commission, by the World Body of Boxing, in Beijing in 1994.

Recalling one of his saddest moments, Eddie said that it was on 21st March 1952, when he was accompanying the Ret. Hon. D. S. Senanayake, the first Prime Minister of Ceylon, during a morning outing on horse-back at the Galle Face Green in Colombo, the Prime Minister suffered a sudden stroke and died on admission to hospital.

One of his happiest moments, was when he was invited by the Australian Olympic Board in Melbourne, to carry the Olympic torch on a short distance, when it passed through in the torch relay for the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

All this is only a brief sketch of Eddie Gray's love for sport and the Olympic Movement on which he has spent considerable time, energy and money.

His love and intense interest in Sri Lanka sport is manifested in an extremely rare but remarkable collection of trophies, souvenirs, photographs, pennants, caricatures, badges, etc; etc; connected with the sports he has participated in from his schooldays at Royal, through the years in the Police, Olympics, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, right upto the present times in Australia - It's a real sportsman's museum! A visit to his home in Melbourne is a time well-spent and will be a memoir that will never be forgotten by any sports loving person!

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries |

Produced by Lake House
Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager