Aquatics at the 1938 British Empire Games
| Aquatics at the 1938 British Empire Games | |
|---|---|
| Venue | North Sydney Olympic Pool |
| Location | Sydney, Australia |
| Dates | 5 – 12 February 1938 |
At the 1938 British Empire Games in Sydney, Australia, there were two aquatics disciplines – swimming and diving. There were four diving events contested and 13 swimming events.[1][2]
The events were held at the North Sydney Olympic Pool, which was built two years earlier.[3]
Australia and England both won seven gold medals and three silver medals but Australia topped the aquatics medal table by virtue of winning six bronze medal to Englands's three.[4]
Medal table
* Host nation (Australia)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia (AUS)* | 7 | 3 | 6 | 16 |
| 2 | England (ENG) | 7 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
| 3 | Canada (CAN) | 3 | 6 | 6 | 15 |
| 4 | South Africa (SAF) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | Guiana (BGU) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Wales (WAL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 7 | New Zealand (NZL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Scotland (SCO) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (8 entries) | 17 | 17 | 17 | 51 | |
Medal summary
Diving
Men's events
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 m springboard | Ron Masters | 126.36 | Doug Tomalin | 124.78 | George Athans | 117.90 |
| 10 m platform | Doug Tomalin | 108.74 | Ron Masters | 102.87 | George Athans | 98.93 |
Women's events
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 m springboard | Irene Donnett | 91.18 | Lynda Adams | 88.27 | Marie Sharkey | 81.66 |
| 10 m platform | Lurline Hook | 36.47 | Lynda Adams | 36.39 | Irene Donnett | 34.57 |
Swimming
Men's events
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 110 yd freestyle | Bob Pirie | 59.6 | Terry Collard | 60.8 | William Fleming | 61.0 |
| 440 yd freestyle | Bob Pirie | 4:54.6 | Bob Leivers | 4:55.4 | Robin Biddulph | 4:55.5 |
| 1650 yd freestyle | Bob Leivers | 19:46.4 | Bob Pirie | 19:59.2 | Norman Wainwright | 20:17.4 |
| 110 yd backstroke | Percy Oliver | 1:07.9 | Gordon Kerr | 1:09.0 | Micky Taylor | 1:09.3 |
| 220 yd breaststroke | John Davies | 2:51.9 | Walter Spence | 3:00.5 | Jimmy Prentice | 3:00.8 |
| 4×220 yd freestyle relay | England Frederick Dove Mostyn Ffrench-Williams Norman Wainwright Bob Leivers |
9:19.0 | Canada George Burleigh Gordon Devlin Robert Hooper Bob Pirie |
9:20.2 | Australia Robert Wilshire Noel Ryan Robin Biddulph William Fleming |
9:32.9 |
| 3×110 yd medley relay | England Frederick Dove John Davies Micky Taylor |
3:28.2 | Canada Gordon Kerr Jimmy Prentice Bob Pirie |
3:30.5 | Australia Ernest Hobbs Percy Oliver William Fleming |
3:31.8 |
Women's events
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 110 yd freestyle | Evelyn de Lacy | 1:10.1 | Dorothy Green | 1:11.1 | Dorothy Lyon | 1:12.1 |
| 440 yd freestyle | Dorothy Green | 5:39.7 | Margaret Jeffery | 5:40.2 | Mona Leydon | 5:42.0 |
| 110 yd backstroke | Pat Norton | 1:19.5 | Jeanne Greenland | 1:22.5 | Margot Hamilton | 1:23.2 |
| 220 yd breaststroke | Doris Storey | 3:06.3 | Carla Gerke | 3:12.1 | Joan Langdon | 3:22.2 |
| 4×110 yd freestyle relay | Canada Noel Oxenbury Dorothy Lyon Mary Baggaley Phyllis Dewar |
4:48.3 | Australia Dorothy Green Evelyn de Lacy Margaret Rawson Pat Norton |
4:49.0 | England Edna Hughes Joyce Harrowby Margery Hinton Zilpha Grant |
4:50.1 |
| 3×110 yd medley relay | England Doris Storey Lorna Frampton Margery Hinton |
3:57.7 | South Africa Carla Gerke Hazel Holmes Molly Ryde |
4:07.5 | Australia Evelyn de Lacy Pat Norton Valerie George |
4:10.0 |
Finals
Men
3 m springboard
| Pos | Athlete | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ron Masters | 126.36 |
| 2 | Doug Tomalin | 124.78 |
| 3 | George Athans | 117.90 |
| 4 | George Johnston | 111.39 |
| 5 | David Norris | 110.62 |
10 m platform
| Pos | Athlete | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doug Tomalin | 108.74 |
| 2 | Ron Masters | 102.87 |
| 3 | George Athans | 98.93 |
| 4 | Arthur O'Connor | 97.39 |
| 5 | Ray Davis | 94.21 |
110 yd freestyle
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Pirie | 59.6 |
| 2 | Terry Collard | 1:00.8 |
| 3 | William Fleming | 1:01.0 |
| 4 | Walter Spence | 1:01.2 |
| 5 | Peter Hanan | 1:01.? |
| 6 | Frederick Dove | 1:01.? |
| 7 | J. Robert Wilshire | 1:01.6 |
440 yd freestyle
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Pirie | 4:54.6 |
| 2 | Bob Leivers | 4:55.4 |
| 3 | Robin Biddulph | 4:55.5 |
| 4 | Norman Wainwright | 4:58.0 |
| ? | Robert Hooper | ? |
| ? | Gordon Devlin | ? |
| 7 | Noel Ryan | 5:20.4 |
1650 yd freestyle
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Leivers | 19:46.4 |
| 2 | Bob Pirie | 19:59.2 |
| 3 | Norman Wainwright | 20:17.4 |
| 4 | Gordon Devlin | 20:38.5 |
| 5 | Robin Biddulph | 20:42.2 |
| 6 | Noel Ryan | 21:08.2 |
| 7 | Robert Hooper | ? |
110 yd backstroke
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Percy Oliver | 1:07.9 |
| 2 | Gordon Kerr | 1:09.0 |
| 3 | Micky Taylor | 1:09.3 |
| 4 | Jean M. Demers | 1:14.2 |
| 5 | Mostyn French-Williams | ? |
| 6 | Willie Francis | ? |
| 7 | Graham Huxtable | ? |
220 yd breaststroke
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Davies | 2:51.9 |
| 2 | Walter Spence | 3:00.5 |
| 3 | Jimmy Prentice | 3:00.8 |
| 4 | Ray Cameron | 3:03.3 |
| 5 | John Johnson | 3:03.6 |
| 6 | Percy Belvin | 3:03.6 |
| 7 | Ernest A. Hobbs | 3:09.0 |
4×220 yd freestyle relay
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frederick Dove, Mostyn Ffrench-Williams, Norman Wainwright, Bob Leivers | 9:19.0 |
| 2 | George Burleigh, Gordon Devlin, Robert Hooper, Bob Pirie | 9:20.2 |
| 3 | Robert Wilshire, Noel Ryan, Robin Biddulph, William Fleming | 9:32.9 |
3×110 yd medley relay
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frederick Dove, John Davies, Micky Taylor | 3:28.2 |
| 2 | Gordon Kerr, Jimmy Prentice, Bob Pirie | 3:30.5 |
| 3 | Ernest Hobbs, Percy Oliver, William Fleming | 3:31.8 |
Women
3 m springboard
| Pos | Athlete | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Irene Donnett | 91.18 |
| 2 | Lynda Adams | 88.27 |
| 3 | Marie Sharkey | 81.66 |
| 4 | Laurie Hawe | 75.32 |
| 5 | Barbara Richards | 69.18 |
| 6 | Gwen Rix | 65.86 |
| 7 | Janet Weidenhofer | 47.40 |
10 m platform
| Pos | Athlete | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lurline Hook | 36.47 |
| 2 | Lynda Adams | 36.39 |
| 3 | Irene Donnett | 34.57 |
| 4 | Jean Gilbert | 33.90 |
| 5 | Pamela Hunt | 26.10 |
110 yd freestyle
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evelyn de Lacy | 1:10.1 |
| 2 | Dorothy Green | 1:11.1 |
| 3 | Dorothy Lyon | 1:12.1 |
| 4 | Phyllis Dewar | 1:12.2 |
| 5 | Edna Hughes | ? |
| 6 | Mollie Ryde | ? |
| 7 | Zilpha Grant | ? |
440 yd freestyle
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dorothy Green | 5:39.7 |
| 2 | Margaret Jeffery | 5:40.2 |
| 3 | Mona Leydon | 5:42.0 |
| 4 | Dorothy Hobson | 5:47.0 |
| ? | Phyllis Dewar | ? |
| 6 | Mynee Steel | 5:51.7 |
| ? | Mollie Ryde | ? |
110 yd backstroke
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pat Norton | 1:19.5 |
| 2 | Jeanne Greenland | 1:22.5 |
| 3 | Margot Hamilton | 1:23.2 |
| 4 | Noel Oxenbury | 1.23.2/10 |
| 5 | Zilpha Grant | ? |
| 6 | Florence Humble | ? |
| 7 | Lorna Frampton | ? |
220 yd breaststroke
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doris Storey | 3:06.3 |
| 2 | Carla Gerke | 3:12.1 |
| 3 | Joan Langdon | 3:22.2 |
| 4 | Valerie George | 3:23.0 |
| 5 | Joan Thomas | 3:23.6 |
| 6 | Margaret Dovey | 3:32.0 |
| 7 | Winnie Dunn | ? |
4×110 yd freestyle relay
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Noel Oxenbury, Dorothy Lyon, Mary Baggaley, Phyllis Dewar | 4:48.3 |
| 2 | Dorothy Green, Evelyn de Lacy, Margaret Rawson, Pat Norton | 4:49.0 |
| 3 | Edna Hughes, Joyce Harrowby, Margery Hinton, Zilpha Grant | 4:50.1 |
3×110 yd medley relay
| Pos | Athlete | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doris Storey, Lorna Frampton, Margery Hinton | 3:57.7 |
| 2 | Carla Gerke,Hazel Holmes, Molly Ryde | 4:07.5 |
| 3 | Evelyn de Lacy, Pat Norton, Valerie George | 4:10.0 |
| 4 | Canada | 4:10.1 |
| 5 | Joyce Macdonald, Mona Leydon, Winnie Dunn | 4:22.3 |
References
- ^ "Commonwealth Games Medallists - Swimming and Diving (men)". GBR Athletics. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
- ^ "Commonwealth Games Medallists - Swimming and Diving (women)". GBR Athletics. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
- ^ "The 1938 Commonwealth Games". Lochista. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
- ^ "Medal Standings 1938". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 27 August 2025.