Neil Jackson

Hailing from Southport, backstroke swimmer Neil Jackson attended the town’s University School, where he first showed potential as a future swimming champion. He joined the Southport Swimming Club as a 13-year-old and won many local and regional titles, and in 1963 made his international début against Australia when just 17.

Unfortunately for Jackson, despite 11 podium finishes at the ASA Championships, he won just one title, the 220 yards in 1966. He finished second in the 110 yards five years in succession between 1965-69 (three time behind Roddy Jones). Included in Jackson’s total of 11 podiums were two second places in the 110 yards butterfly.

Jackson captained the England men’s swimming team at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games at Kingston, Jamaica, where he won a bronze medal in the 110 yards backstroke, and a silver in the 4x100 yards medley relay. At that year’s European Championships in Utrecht he reached the 4x100 medley relay final. Jackson broke both the 110 and 220 yards British records in 1965 and at the following year’s Commonwealth Games took the 220 record under 2:20 with 2:19.2, and in 1967 he reduced it further to 2:18.5.

For the 1968 Mexico Olympics, Jackson was selected for both backstroke events, the 100 metres butterfly, and the 4x100 medley relay. The nearest he got to a place in a final was in finishing third in his butterfly semi-final in a heat won by Mark Spitz.

Jackson, who was a trainee hairdresser in his mother’s salon as a teenager later worked for the famous international hair care company Wella. In 2002 Jackson won the silver medal behind Hungary’s Jozsef Calkany in both the 50 and 100 metres backstroke at the World Masters’ Swimming Championships at Christchurch, New Zealand. Jackson also won bronze in the 200. He was later the Masters coach to the Basingstoke Bluefins swimming team and subsequently at his old club in Southport.