Andrew Murray Charlton (12 August 1907 – 10 December 1975), known popularly as Boy Charlton, was an Australian freestyle swimmer of the 1920s and 1930s who won a gold medal in the 1500 m freestyle at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. He set five world records and also won a further three silver and one bronze medal in his Olympic career.
Born in North Sydney as the only son of Oswald and Ada Charlton, the accounts of his early life vary. The Aus...
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Andrew Murray Charlton (12 August 1907 – 10 December 1975), known popularly as Boy Charlton, was an Australian freestyle swimmer of the 1920s and 1930s who won a gold medal in the 1500 m freestyle at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. He set five world records and also won a further three silver and one bronze medal in his Olympic career.
Born in North Sydney as the only son of Oswald and Ada Charlton, the accounts of his early life vary. The Australian Dictionary of Biography states that his father was a bank manager, while other accounts suggest that he was raised in low socio-economic conditions and relied on benefactors to support his career. He was raised in the northern seaside suburb of Manly and was educated at Manly Public School and later Sydney Grammar School.
Charlton first came to public attention in 1921 when he won a 440yd freestyle race in the open division at a New South Wales Swimming Association competition in 5m 45s. In 1922 Bill Harris, the bronze medallist in the...
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