Lance East

An excellent sportsman and military man, Lance East had an exemplary Army record. He was educated at Bedford School and then the Royal Military College at Sandhurst before being commissioned into The Queen’s Royal Regiment in July 1921. He served firstly in India and then in France, and was mentioned in dispatches in 1940 for his gallant and distinguished service. After being second-in-command, he was appointed commander of his Battalion in August 1941 and held that rank until 1948. He was awarded the DSO for his fine leadership in North Africa and, after becoming Provost Marshal of the Rhine Army in 1946, was made an OBE. East retired from the Army in 1952.

East was a keen all-round sportsman and played hockey for his Battalion and rugby for Richmond (alongside fellow Olympian David Turquand-Young, and was runner-up in the light-heavyweight division at the 1926 Army Boxing Championships. Also, he was a fine fencer and polo player and, in addition to him being a member of the British modern pentathlon team at the 1928 Olympics, he finished fourth in the Amateur British Modern Pentathlon Championship that same year, which helped with his selection onto the Olympic team.