Stuart Kramm

Stuart Kramm was originally selected for the five-man Ireland swimming and diving team for the 1948 Olympic Games but from the moment they arrived in London, the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) was embroiled in Olympic politics. Because Liam Jones and Ernie McCartney were both born in Belfast (Northern Ireland), they were told by both the world governing body FINA and the IOC that they could not compete for Ireland (Southern Ireland). As a result, the entire Irish swimming and diving squad withdrew in solidarity.

When selected for the London Olympics, Kramm was the 1948 Leinster 100- and 440-yards freestyle champion. As a member of the Sandycove Swimming Club, he was in their team that won both the Leinster and Irish 4x220 yards relay titles in 1948 and 1949.

An excellent water polo player, Kramm won county honours with Leinster and was in the Sandycove team beaten by the crack Clonard team in the final of the Irish Cup in 1953 and 1954. One of Kramm’s team-mates at Sandycove was Paddy Kavanagh, and they attended Dublin’s Blackrock College together as youngsters. By profession, Kramm was a tailor making ladies clothes.