By Glen Atwell
AN AUSTRALIAN Olympic legend will be honoured at the Pakenham Racing Club’s inaugural Super Jumps Day this Sunday.
Equestrian stalwart Bill Roycroft, aged 90, will attend the race meeting and present a trophy to connections of race winners.
Roycroft is one of only five Australians to have competed in five Olympic games.
He represented Australia in Rome in 1960, Tokyo in 1964, Mexico City in 1968, Munich in 1972 and Montreal in 1976.
During the Rome Olympics, Roycroft, then 45, was thrown from his horse and suffered concussion and a broken collarbone during one of the endurance events.
After treatment at hospital, Roycroft knew that if he withdrew from the event, his team would be disqualified.
The Roycroft legacy was born when he left his bed next morning and competed in the jumping test. The heroic effort resulted in Australia winning the gold in the teams event.
Roycroft competed in the following four Olympics where he won bronze medals in the same event in 1968 and 1976.
He was 63 years old when he competed at Montreal.
In 1968 Roycroft carried the Australian flag at Mexico City, he was awarded an Order of Merit by the Australian Olympic Committee in 1978 for his outstanding achievement in sport and was inducted into the Sports Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
Roycroft carried the official Olympic flag into the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games opening ceremony, accompanied by seven other Olympians.
His legacy to equestrian sport shines throughout the Roycroft family. Three of Bill’s sons represented Australia at the Olympics.
Roycroft has followed local jockey Andrea Leek, winner of last year’s Grand National Steeplechase, and has taken a special interest in her career.
Andrea’s husband and trainer John Leek said Roycroft and Andrea shared similar interests.
“They both love horses and have achieved some great things in their sports,” he said.
Leek said the Super Jumps Day was going to be “terrific”.
“For the Pakenham Racing Club it is going to be the most exciting thing that’s ever happened,” he said. “There are plenty of nominations, the crowd is going to be huge and, if the weather is nice, it will be a cracking day.”
Leek is serving a threemonth suspension and will be unable to race any runners during the meeting this Sunday, but he said he would definitely be at the course.
“I’m guest of the committee, so I’ll be down there for sure, I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
