Gordon pirie biography

He competed in the 5000 m and 10,000 m events at the 1952, 19Olympics and won a silver medal in the 5000 m in 1956, placing fourth in 1952.
No doubt, Pirie was arrogant.
Biography.

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The Impossible Hero: A Biography of Gordon 'Puff Puff' Pirie - Hardcover

Synopsis

Gordon Pirie was one of the best-known sports personalities of his day. During the 1950s his races against Zatopek and Kuts captured the imagination of millions. Crowds flocked to the White City stadium to see him run. With Bannister, Chataway and others Pirie led a revival in British athletics. He inspired generations of young athletes, first as a runner and later as a coach. At the time, the records he set, and the training he did, seemed little short of impossible. Pirie was a pioneer in taking British sport out of its amateur and part-time traditions. Single-mindedness and courage helped him to set new standards in sport and win the admiration of the public; this approach also led him into conflicts with the world. His determination to speak his mind produced fierce battles with authority and the uncompromising spirit, which helped him achieve so much on the track, brought problems off it. The disappointments of his later years contrasted sharply with the triumphs of his youth. Dick Boo

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Gordon Pirie

Pirie in 1956
Born	10 February 1931 Leeds, England
Died	7 December 1991 (aged 60) Lymington, England
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	65 kg (143 lb)
Sport	Running
Club	South London Harriers, London

Douglas Alistair Gordon Pirie (10 February 1931 – 7 December 1991) was an Englishlong-distance runner. He was born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England but was brought up in Coulsdon, Surrey and ran for South London Harriers.

Pirie died of bile duct cancer in Lymington, Hampshire.

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Gordon Pirie was unique in British athletics in the 1950s as he became the sport’s first full-time athlete. He gave up a good career in banking to concentrate on his sporting career, and it came at a time when athletes in Britain received no financial support.

Known as “Puff-puff”, because he was famous for puffing out his cheeks in time to his running stride, Pirie was outspoken and courted controversy with the media and athletics authorities throughout his career. He still became an outstanding distance runner, however, who went on to break five world records, set 22 British records at distances ranging from 2000 to 10,000 metres, and won many British cross-country and AAA titles.

Unfortunately Pirie never won a major international title. He appeared in three Olympics between 1952-60, winning just one medal, a 5000 metres silver at the Melbourne Games, when he was involved in a classic encounter, and finished second to the Soviet runner Vladimir Kuts. Pirie also won a 5000 bronze at the 1958 European Championships in Stockholm. At the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in C