Bevil Rudd

Bevil Rudd was the grandson of Charles Rudd, who co-founded the De Beers diamond mining company. Bevil attended St Andrew’s College in Grahamstown, where he excelled as a student and an athlete, earning a Rhodes Scholarship in 1913, later studying at Trinity College, Oxford.

As an athlete, Rudd’s most successful year was 1920, winning a full set of medals – gold in the 400 m, silver in the 4x400 m relay and bronze in the 800 m at the Antwerpen Olympics. The same year he also won both the 440 yds and 880 yds title at the British AAA Championships and was named as the British Athlete of the Year. After completing his studies in England, Rudd returned to South Africa, where he worked as a sports journalist. In 1930, he became an editor for the Daily Telegraph, a position he held until after World War II.

Personal Bests: 400 – 48.3y (1920); 800 – 1:53.6 (1920).