Prudent Joye
Encyclopedia
Prudent Joye was a French
track and field
athlete who specialised in the 400 metres hurdles
. He competed for France at the 1936 Summer Olympics
and won gold at the 1938 European Athletics Championships. His personal best of 53 seconds was a French record
from 1938 until 1946.
on 15 December 1913, he began competing at the elite level of athletics in his early twenties and broke Jean Bouin
's French record
on 23 July 1936, running a time of 53.4 seconds. His first major international competition came soon after when he represented France at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He ran in the heats of the men's 400 metres hurdles
and was somewhat unfortunate to be eliminated as his time of 54.1 seconds was the sixth fastest of the round. However, his third place finish in his heat meant he was not among the twelve athletes who progressed to the semi-finals. He also ran in the 4×400 metres relay team, which was also eliminated in the heats stage. He was virtually unrivalled on the national stage, however, and he won every French 400 m hurdles title from 1936 to 1939.
The second major competition of his career was the 1938 European Athletics Championships and he demonstrated fine form in the weeks prior to the event by improving his French record to 53 seconds flat. The men's events were held at the Stade Olympique de Colombes in Paris
and Joye was the only athlete to reach the top of the podium for the host nation. He saw off a challenge from Hungarian
József Kovács to win the gold medal
with a time of 53.1 seconds – just off his national record but a championship record nevertheless. He ran the anchor leg for the French 4×400 m relay team at the championships but he was beaten to the finish by Swedish
runner Bertil von Wachenfeldt, just missing out on a medal by finishing fourth.
He was captured by German soldiers in 1940 and imprisoned in an internment
camp. He broke free soon after and joined a group of freedom fighters
in the French Resistance
, looking to the overturn of the German occupation of France. He returned to the athletics scene and continued his national success, winning in 1941 and 1943, although Henri Maignan took the title in 1942. He gradually moved towards training other athletes and he received his final selection for the national team in 1945, the year that France returned to international competition.
After retiring from athletics, he became a certified kinesiotherapist through the Faculté de Médecine and moved to practice in Orléans
. His French record in the 400 m hurdles stood until 1946, when it was beaten by Yves Cros who ran 52.6 seconds. He died on 5 November 1980, leaving behind a wife and five children, and his funeral was held at the Saint-Laurent church of Orléans.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete who specialised in the 400 metres hurdles
400 metres hurdles
The 400 metres hurdles is an Olympic athletics event in track and field. On a standard outdoor track 400 metres is the length of the inside lane once around the stadium. Runners stay in their lane the entire way after starting out of the blocks and must clear ten hurdles that are evenly...
. He competed for France at the 1936 Summer Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
and won gold at the 1938 European Athletics Championships. His personal best of 53 seconds was a French record
French records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in France maintained by France's national athletics federation – Fédération française d'athlétisme .- Men :- Women :- Men :- Women :+ = en route to a longer distance...
from 1938 until 1946.
Career
Born in RoubaixRoubaix
Roubaix is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is located between the cities of Lille and Tourcoing.The Gare de Roubaix railway station offers connections to Lille, Tourcoing, Antwerp, Ostend and Paris.-Culture:...
on 15 December 1913, he began competing at the elite level of athletics in his early twenties and broke Jean Bouin
Jean Bouin
Jean Bouin was a French athlete and rugby union footballer. He competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London and at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm....
's French record
French records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in France maintained by France's national athletics federation – Fédération française d'athlétisme .- Men :- Women :- Men :- Women :+ = en route to a longer distance...
on 23 July 1936, running a time of 53.4 seconds. His first major international competition came soon after when he represented France at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He ran in the heats of the men's 400 metres hurdles
Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metre hurdles
The men's 400 metres hurdles event at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games took place on August 3 and August 4. The final was won by American Glenn Hardin.-Heat 1:-Heat 2:-Heat 3:-Heat 4:-Heat 5:-Heat 6:-Semi-final 1:-Semi-final 2:...
and was somewhat unfortunate to be eliminated as his time of 54.1 seconds was the sixth fastest of the round. However, his third place finish in his heat meant he was not among the twelve athletes who progressed to the semi-finals. He also ran in the 4×400 metres relay team, which was also eliminated in the heats stage. He was virtually unrivalled on the national stage, however, and he won every French 400 m hurdles title from 1936 to 1939.
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Joye was the only athlete to reach the top of the podium for the host nation. He saw off a challenge from Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
József Kovács to win the gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
with a time of 53.1 seconds – just off his national record but a championship record nevertheless. He ran the anchor leg for the French 4×400 m relay team at the championships but he was beaten to the finish by Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
runner Bertil von Wachenfeldt, just missing out on a medal by finishing fourth.
He was captured by German soldiers in 1940 and imprisoned in an internment
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...
camp. He broke free soon after and joined a group of freedom fighters
Resistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
in the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
, looking to the overturn of the German occupation of France. He returned to the athletics scene and continued his national success, winning in 1941 and 1943, although Henri Maignan took the title in 1942. He gradually moved towards training other athletes and he received his final selection for the national team in 1945, the year that France returned to international competition.
After retiring from athletics, he became a certified kinesiotherapist through the Faculté de Médecine and moved to practice in Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
. His French record in the 400 m hurdles stood until 1946, when it was beaten by Yves Cros who ran 52.6 seconds. He died on 5 November 1980, leaving behind a wife and five children, and his funeral was held at the Saint-Laurent church of Orléans.
Competition record
| 1936 | Olympic Games Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics At the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, 29 athletics events were contested, 23 for men and 6 for women. The program of events was unchanged from the previous Games. There was a total of 776 participants from 43 countries competing.-Medal table:... |
Berlin Berlin Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union... , Germany |
3rd (heats) | 400 m hurdles Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metre hurdles The men's 400 metres hurdles event at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games took place on August 3 and August 4. The final was won by American Glenn Hardin.-Heat 1:-Heat 2:-Heat 3:-Heat 4:-Heat 5:-Heat 6:-Semi-final 1:-Semi-final 2:... |
| 3rd (heats) | 4×400 m relay Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics – Men's 4x400 metre relay The men's 4 x 400 metres relay event at the 1936 Olympic Games took place between August 8 & August 9.-Final:-References:*, from http://www.sports-reference.com/; retrieved 2010-05-05.... |
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| 1938 | European Championships | Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... , France |
1st | 400 m hurdles |
| 4th | 4×400 m relay | |||