View source for Percy Williams (sprinter)

{{short description|Canadian sprinter}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name           = Percy Alfred Williams
| image          = Percy Williams 1928.jpg
| image_size     = 
| caption        = Percy Williams at the 1928 Olympics
| birth_date     = May 19, 1908
| birth_place    = [[Vancouver]], British Columbia, Canada
| death_date     = {{death date and age|1982|11|29|1908|5|19}}
| death_place    = Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| height         = 1.70 m
| weight         = 56 kg
| sport          = Sprint running
| club           = Vancouver Athletic Club
| alma_mater     = 
| show-medals    = yes
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalCountry|{{flag|Canada|1921}} }}
{{MedalCompetition|Olympics}}
{{MedalGold  | [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928 Amsterdam]] | [[Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics - Men's 100 metres|100 metres]]}}
{{MedalGold  | 1928 Amsterdam | [[Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics - Men's 200 metres|200 metres]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Commonwealth Games|British Empire Games]]}}
{{MedalGold| [[1930 British Empire Games|1930 Hamilton]]|[[Athletics at the 1930 British Empire Games|100 yards]]}}
}}

'''Percy Alfred Williams'''<ref name="Hawley"/> {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|OC}} (May 19, 1908 – November 29, 1982) was a Canadian [[Athletics (sport)|athlete]], winner of the 100 and 200 metres races at the [[1928 Summer Olympics]] and a former [[List of world records in athletics|world record holder]] for the [[100 metres]] sprint.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Book of Olympic Lists |url=https://archive.org/details/bookofolympiclis0000wall |url-access=registration |first=David |last=Wallechinsky |year= 2012 |isbn= 978-1845137731 |page= [https://archive.org/details/bookofolympiclis0000wall/page/17 17]|publisher=Aurum Press }}</ref>

==Early life==
Williams was the only child of Frederick Williams, who was originally from [[England]], and Charlotte Rhodes, who hailed from [[St. Johns, Newfoundland|St. John's]], [[Newfoundland Colony|Newfoundland]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Percy Williams: Childhood|url=http://www.samuelhawley.com/percychildhood.html|publisher=samuelhawley.com|access-date=10 September 2017|author=Samuel Hawley|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614074340/http://www.samuelhawley.com/percychildhood.html|archive-date=14 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Volume 22: St Johns WESLEYAN METHODIST: George Street Church Baptisms 1882-1891|url=http://ngb.chebucto.org/Vstats/pre-1891-george-st-methodist-bap-1882-1891-sjc.shtml|publisher=ngb.chebucto.org/|access-date=11 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170605195717/http://ngb.chebucto.org/Vstats/pre-1891-george-st-methodist-bap-1882-1891-sjc.shtml|archive-date=5 June 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> At the age of 15, Williams suffered from [[rheumatic fever]] and was advised to avoid strenuous physical activities. However, as his high school required participation in athletic competitions, he started training in sprint in 1924 and by 1927 became a local champion.

==Olympic competition==
[[File:PercyWilliams.jpg|thumb|left|Williams hoisted aloft by [[Phil Edwards (runner)|Phil Edwards]] (left) and [[Brant Little]] after winning the 100 metres at the [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928 Olympics]].]]
At the 1928 Olympic trials, Williams won the 100 and 200 metres races, equaling the Olympic 100 metres record of 10.6 seconds.<ref name=r1/><ref name=Tyee>{{cite web|title=Vancouver's Forgotten Track Star|url=https://thetyee.ca/Life/2012/08/04/Percy-Williams/|publisher=TheTyee.ca|access-date=6 August 2012|author=Geoff D'Auria|date=4 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120807040943/http://thetyee.ca/Life/2012/08/04/Percy-Williams/|archive-date=7 August 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

To earn his travel ticket for the trials, Williams and his volunteer coach, Bob Granger, worked as waiters and dishwashers in a railroad dining car, and Vancouver track fans raised the money to pay Granger's transatlantic ship passage to the 1928 Olympics.<ref name=Tyee/>

In the second round of the 100 metres at [[Amsterdam]], Williams again equaled the Olympic record with a time of 10.6 seconds and did the same in his semi-final, but placed second to [[Bob McAllister (athlete)|Bob McAllister]]. The final opened with two false starts, first by [[Wilfred Legg]] and then one by [[Frank Wykoff]]. Williams took the lead off the start and never relinquished it, winning the gold over [[Jack London (athlete)|Jack London]] with [[Georg Lammers]] third. Williams then won the 200 metres two days later, coming from behind to overtake [[Helmut Körnig]], who had led out of the bend. It was Williams' eighth race in four days and he was the first non-American to complete the sprint double.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Athletics at the 1928 Amsterdam Summer Games:Men's 100 metres|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1928/ATH/mens-100-metres.html|publisher=sports-reference.com|access-date=3 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712124309/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1928/ATH/mens-100-metres.html|archive-date=12 July 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Athletics at the 1928 Amsterdam Summer Games:Men's 200 metres|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1928/ATH/mens-200-metres.html|publisher=sports-reference.com|access-date=3 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629155602/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1928/ATH/mens-200-metres.html|archive-date=29 June 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> Williams was also part of the Canadian team which was disqualified in the final of the [[Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 100 metres relay|4 × 100 metre relay contest]].<ref name=r1/>

Williams's victories were front-page news in Canada and he returned a national hero, feted by enormous crowds across the country. An estimated 25,000 people turned out to welcome him at the [[Canadian Pacific Railway]] station at the foot of [[Granville Street]] in Vancouver.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Canada 150: Percy Williams, the world's fastest man|url=https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/canada-150/canada-150-percy-williams-the-worlds-fastest-man|publisher=Vancouversun.com|access-date=2 August 2018|author=John Mackie|date=27 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803014058/https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/canada-150/canada-150-percy-williams-the-worlds-fastest-man|archive-date=3 August 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Williams was met off the train by Mayor [[L.&nbsp;D. Taylor]] and Premier [[Simon Fraser Tolmie]]. They bundled him and Granger into cars and paraded them through the confetti-filled city. The event was broadcast live by reporters with microphones stationed along the route.<ref name=Tyee/>

Williams showed that his success was not an accident, setting a [[Men's 100 metres world record progression|World Record]] at the [[Canadian Track and Field Championships]] at [[Varsity Stadium]] in [[Toronto]] in 1930. He then won the 100 yard dash at the inaugural British Empire Games (now known as the [[Commonwealth Games]]) in [[Hamilton, Ontario]], but tore the tendons in his upper left leg around the 70 yard mark and never made a full comeback.<ref name="British">{{Cite web|title=The British Empire Games of 1930|url=http://torontoist.com/2015/07/the-british-empire-games-of-1930/|publisher=Torontoist.com|access-date=30 August 2017|author=Jamie Bradburn|date=21 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170831000151/http://torontoist.com/2015/07/the-british-empire-games-of-1930/|archive-date=31 August 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> At the [[1932 Summer Olympics]] in Los Angeles, he was eliminated in the semi-finals of the [[Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics - Men's 100 metres|100 metre event]]. With the Canadian team he finished fourth in the [[Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 100 metres relay|4 × 100 metre relay competition]]. Subsequently, Williams stopped running and became an insurance agent.<ref name=Tyee/>

==Later life and death==
In August 1940, Williams joined the [[Non-Permanent Active Militia]], his occupation listed as "Salesman" and religion as "C of E" ([[Church of England]]). He also served as a civilian pilot during [[World War&nbsp;II]], ferrying aircraft around the country for [[Canadian Airways]], then became a civilian flight instructor with the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]].<ref name="SH">{{cite web|title=Percy Williams: Later Life and Today|url=http://www.samuelhawley.com/percylaterlife.html|publisher=samuelhawley.com|access-date=2 August 2018|author=Samuel Hawley|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619204731/http://www.samuelhawley.com/percylaterlife.html|archive-date=19 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1971, after his former mentor's death, Williams was asked how much credit was due to Granger for his Olympic success. "Offhand, I'd say 100 percent," Williams answered.<ref name="SH"/>

In the mid-1960s, he donated his two gold medals from the 1928 Olympics to the [[BC Sports Hall of Fame]], saying he wanted them to be seen and remembered. In 1980, they were stolen never to be found again; gold prices at the time were at historic highs and it was suspected the medals had been melted down.<ref name="cbc2023"/> It was said at that time Williams simply shrugged off the loss and no replacements were ever issued. In 2023 the stolen medals were replaced by newly minted replicas, recreated by the International Olympic Committee at the request of Williams family, who then rededicated them to B.C. Sports Hall of Fame.<ref name="cbc2023">{{cite news |last1=Larsen |first1=Karin |title=Family of Canadian track legend receives replica Olympic gold medals after originals were stolen |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/family-of-canadian-track-legend-receives-replica-olympic-gold-medals-after-originals-were-stolen-1.6758000 |access-date=25 February 2023 |publisher=CBC Sports |date=23 February 2023}}</ref>

In later years, Williams grew bitter about his sporting experiences, culminating in being the only living Canadian Olympic gold medalist who refused the federal government's invitation to attend the [[1976 Summer Olympics]] in [[Montreal]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Yesterday's anti-heroes|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sydney/story/0,,373476,00.html|work=The Guardian|access-date=3 September 2018|author=Nick Mason|date=26 September 2000|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904011333/https://www.theguardian.com/sydney/story/0,,373476,00.html|archive-date=4 September 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1979, he was made an Officer of the [[Order of Canada]].<ref>[http://archive.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2366 Percy A. Williams] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112900/http://archive.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2366 |date=2016-03-04 }}, Order of Canada</ref>

Williams, who never married, lived with his mother, Dot, until her death in 1980, at the age of 92.<ref name=Tyee/> After that, he lived on alone and suffered from terrible [[arthritis|arthritic]] pain.

A keen collector of guns, Williams shot himself in the head with a shotgun he had been awarded in 1928 as a prize for his Olympic feat. His suicide was a major surprise to everyone and no note was left.<ref name="Hawley">Samuel Hawley, ''I Just Ran: Percy Williams, World's Fastest Human'' (Ronsdale Press, 2011), p. 272.</ref> He was interred at Masonic Cemetery of [[British Columbia]], Burnaby, Canada.

==Awards and recognition==
[[File:Percy Williams statue.jpg|thumb|right|A close up of the statue of Williams which is located outside [[BC Place]] stadium in Vancouver.]]
In 1950, Williams was proclaimed by a Canadian press poll as Canada's greatest track athlete of the first half of the century, which was later updated in 1972 to declare him Canada's all-time greatest Olympic athlete.<ref name="Sears2015">{{cite book|author=Edward S. Sears|title=Running Through the Ages, 2d ed.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UMDeCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA154|date=23 June 2015|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2086-2|pages=154–}}</ref>

Percy Williams Junior Public School located in [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], is named after Williams.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://schoolweb.tdsb.on.ca/percywilliams/About-Us |title=Percy Williams Junior Public School |access-date=2017-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170824093605/http://schoolweb.tdsb.on.ca/percywilliams/About-Us |archive-date=2017-08-24 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1996, [[Canada Post]] released a postage stamp of Percy Williams as part of its "Sporting Heroes" series.<ref>{{cite web|title=OTD: Percy Williams born in Vancouver|url=https://canadianstampnews.com/otd-percy-williams-born-vancouver/|publisher=canadianstampnews.com|access-date=3 August 2018|date=19 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804045706/https://canadianstampnews.com/otd-percy-williams-born-vancouver/|archive-date=4 August 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Outside the BC Sports Hall of Fame at [[BC Place]] is a life-sized statue of Williams, crouched in a sprinter's stance.<ref>{{cite web|title=Vancouver History: Percy Williams|url=https://miss604.com/2012/07/vancouver-history-percy-williams.html|publisher=miss604.com|access-date=3 August 2018|author=Rebecca Bollwitt|date=31 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803223956/https://miss604.com/2012/07/vancouver-history-percy-williams.html|archive-date=3 August 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Competition record==
{| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|-
!colspan="6"|Representing {{flag|Canada|1921}}
|-
|1930
|[[Athletics at the 1930 British Empire Games|British Empire Games]]
|[[Hamilton, Canada]]
|1st
|100 y
|[[Athletics at the 1930 British Empire Games – Men's 100 yards|9.9]]
|}

==See also==
*[[List of Canadian sports personalities]]

== References ==
<references>
<ref name=r1>[https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/wi/percy-williams-1.html Percy Williams] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180917173301/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/wi/percy-williams-1.html |date=2018-09-17 }}. [[Sports-Reference.com]]</ref>
</references>

==External links and further reading==
{{Commons category|Percy Williams}}
* [https://olympics.com/en/video/amsterdam-1928-williams-percy short film of Percy Williams at the 1928 Summer Olympics (olympics.com)]
* Neil Duncanson, ''The Fastest Men on Earth: The Story of the Men's 100 Metre Champions'', HarperCollinsWillow, 1988 
* {{Find a Grave|6945}}
* [http://www.samuelhawley.com/percywilliams.html Percy Williams: an on-line collection of photos and memorabilia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191229230330/http://www.samuelhawley.com/percywilliams.html |date=2019-12-29 }}

{{Footer_Olympic_Champions_100_m_Men}}
{{Footer_Olympic_Champions_200_m_Men}}
{{Footer Commonwealth Champions 100 metres Men}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Percy}}
[[Category:1908 births]]
[[Category:1982 suicides]]
[[Category:1982 deaths]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1930 British Empire Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Canadian Anglicans]]
[[Category:Canadian men sprinters]]
[[Category:Canadian people of English descent]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Canada]]
[[Category:World record setters in the sport of athletics]]
[[Category:Officers of the Order of Canada]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for Canada]]
[[Category:Olympic track and field athletes for Canada]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from Vancouver]]
[[Category:Suicides by firearm in British Columbia]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1928 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Canadian aviators]]
[[Category:Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Medallists at the 1930 British Empire Games]]
[[Category:20th-century Canadian sportsmen]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics]]