Mike Lindsay

At the age of 11, Glasgow-born Mike Lindsay moved to London when his father retired from the Army to take up a position with the Post Office. Mike attended St. Marylebone Grammar School and was a good all-round sportsman, particularly at athletics, cricket and rugby. It was here that his athletics coach convinced him to make the switch from running to throwing turn to throwing, and in 1956 he was the AAA junior shot and discus champion. He retained both titles the following year when he also won his first senior title (discus) while still a junior.

Between 1959-69 Lindsay had seven podium finishes in the shot at the AAA Championships, winning it in 1959. He also enjoyed another seven podium finishes in the discus (1957-67) but, in contrast, won it three times, in 1957, 1959-60. Lindsay also won two indoor AAA shot titles, in 1964 and 1966. In 1963 he became the first Scot to put the shot over 60 feet (18.3m), and that same year enjoyed one of his finest moments when, in the match between Great Britain and the USA at the White City, he beat the future Olympic shot champion Randy Matson into second place.

Although he competed in four Commonwealth Games (1958-70) and two Olympics (1960-64), Lindsay’s only international medals were silver. Firstly, at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games at Perth, Australia, he came second in both the shot and discus, losing the fomer by just 4cm. The following year, at the Summer Universiade in Brazil, he again won silver in both events. When he finished fifth at the 1960 Roma Olympics, it was the highest-ever finish by a British-born shot putter. Although it was subsequently equalled by Geoff Capes at Moskva in 1980, it still stood as the best by a Briton going into the 2020 Games.

In the late 1950s, Lindsay was one of the first British athletes to obtained a sports scholarship to the United States. He attended Oklahoma State University where he competed alongside the best of American throwers like Parry O’Brien and Al Oerter. After completing his education in the US, Lindsay became a teacher at the Carnegie Physical Education College in Leeds before studying for a mechanical engineering degree at Leeds University, which led to him studying biomechanics within physical education, and was involved in lectures on the subject at various academies around Britain. Between 1979-2004 Lindsay was the director of PE at Leeds University.

When he retired from competitive sport in 1971, Lindsay had won both the Scottish shot and discus titles for a record 15 consecutive years, and between 1957-71 had won more than 35 international caps for Scotland and Great Britain. His older brother Chris was also a good standard athlete, and was a former Scottish 220 and 440 champion and also a “B” international. After retiring from athletics, Mike enjoyed playing squash, golf and badminton, and was also a keen orienteer.

Personal Bests: SP – 18.50 (1963); DT – 55.32 (1960).