Jim Alder
Encyclopedia
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 10 June 1940) is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
former distance runner, from Morpeth
Morpeth, Northumberland
Morpeth is the county town of Northumberland, England. It is situated on the River Wansbeck which flows east through the town. The town is from the A1, which bypasses it. Since 1981, it has been the administrative centre of the County of Northumberland. In the 2001 census the town had a population...
.
Alder, who was born in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, was a foster child
Foster Child
Foster Child is a 1987 documentary film by Gil Cardinal, exploring the filmmaker's search, at age thirty-five, for biological family. Cardinal often meets with frustration during his search, but eventually finds his natural family and discovers his Métis roots.This National Film Board of Canada...
. His mother died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
and his father was killed on the last day of the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He moved to Morpeth, north of Newcastle, and became interested in running.
Athletics career
Alder's athletic career saw him compete at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in KingstonKingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
winning Marathon
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
Gold, (having missed the 1964 Summer Olympics
1964 Summer Olympics
The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...
due to a knee injury). The 1968 Summer Olympics
1968 Summer Olympics
The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country...
in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, The 1969 European Championships
1969 European Championships in Athletics
The 9th European Athletics Championships were held from 16 September to 21 September 1969 in the Karaiskaki Stadium of Athens, the capital of Greece. New at these championships were the women's 1,500 metres and the women's 4x400 metres relay event....
in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and The 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
.
He set a new world record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
for 30,000 m of 1hr 34min 01.8sec in 1964.
In that race he also set world records for 20 miles (1hr 40min 58.0sec) and 2 hours (37,994m). The IAAF did not recognise the latter two marks for world records, but they were accepted as United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
national records
At the 1968 Olympic Games, in Mexico City, his height was recorded at 5'8" (172 cm) and his weight was 141 lbs (64 kg).
Alder ran his last marathon in The 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh. In September 1970, in London, he set a new record for 30,000m of 1hr 31min 30.4sec which still stands today. http://www.whitakersalmanack.com/images/WASport09.pdf
Recent media
Most recently he was featured in The Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
, on 15 April 2007, which profiled his gold medal winning run in the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/athletics/article1655145.ece
Alder featured on the BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
series Inside Sport
Inside Sport (TV series)
Inside Sport is a weekly sports magazine programme produced by BBC Sport. The programme is transmitted twice a week, with an extended edition broadcast at Sunday lunch-time. It is presented by Gabby Logan. The programme combines mainstream sporting issues with topics that may not be widely known to...
on 10 October 2007, interviewed by Ray Stubbs
Ray Stubbs
Raymond "Ray" Stubbs is a broadcaster and former footballer. He works for ESPN, presenting live Premier League and Scottish Premier League matches, having joined the satellite sports channel from the BBC in 2009.-Football career:...
.
His biography is called Marathon and Chips
Marathon and Chips
Marathon and Chips is the biography of Scottish athlete Jim Alder.It refers to the marathon and is a play on words with the Marathon chocolate bar, which has since been renamed Snickers. Chips refers to chips or French fries. It was published by Alder Sports in 1981.*Hardcover: 136 pages...
External links
- Sports reference profile
- Geronimo Jim's a gem from The Independent
- Caught in Time from The Sunday Times