Australian Olympic Athlete
Location: RC*J*10
George Bernard Blake was one of Australia’s first great Olympic distance runners and a notable early dual‑code sportsman. Born on 4 September 1878 at St Kilda, Victoria, to Irish immigrant parents, he grew up in a large family that produced several accomplished athletes; his brothers Tom and Mick also played Victorian Football League (VFL) football and were strong distance runners.
Blake first came to prominence on the football field, making his VFL debut for St Kilda in the inaugural 1897 season. He played intermittently for St Kilda through 1898 and 1903, and later appeared once for Carlton in 1905, but his growing success on the track increasingly drew him away from football. A member of the East Melbourne Harriers, he became one of Australia’s leading long‑distance runners in the early 1900s and held the national record for ten miles.
In 1901, Blake travelled to Auckland for the Australasian Championships, finishing second in the three‑mile event and placing as the first Australian home. His performances earned him selection for the 1906 Intercalated Games in Athens, where he contested the 1,500 metres, five‑mile race and marathon. The longer distances suited him best: he placed sixth in the five‑mile and produced a remarkable run in the marathon, leading the field at around 24 kilometres before severe cramp forced him to slow. Even so, he finished sixth overall in 3 hours 9 minutes 35 seconds, a placing not bettered by an Australian marathoner at an Olympic Games until Robert de Castella’s fifth place in 1984.
Blake returned to Europe for the 1908 London Olympics, competing for the combined “Australasia” team. He narrowly missed qualifying for the five‑mile final after placing third in his heat, and in the marathon he was forced to retire after an attendant on a bicycle collided with him while handing refreshments, causing an injury that ended his race. Despite this misfortune, his efforts across both Games established him as Australia’s first truly world‑class distance runner, and later commentators have described him as the country’s earliest great Olympic distance specialist.
Away from international competition, Blake continued to race domestically and remained a respected figure in Victorian athletics. He lived in Melbourne in later life and died at Cheltenham on 6 February 1946, aged 67. He was buried at Brighton General Cemetery. His grave marks the resting place of a pioneer of Australian Olympic distance running—an athlete who bridged the worlds of early VFL football and international athletics at a time when few Australians had the opportunity to compete on the global stage.
Sources:
Wikipedia — George Blake (athlete), summary of Olympic participation (Athens 1906 and London 1908).
Olympedia — “George Blake”, athlete profile confirming birth (4 September 1878, St Kilda) and death (6 February 1946, Cheltenham), including event results and placements.
Australian Olympic Committee Archives — early “Australasia” team listings for the 1906 and 1908 Games.
The Age, The Argus and Sporting Globe reports on Blake’s Olympic performances and domestic athletics career (article IDs 178106893, 178106303, 184800037, 184812004, 169892822, 114320601, 114325290, 14774195, 242590355, 170190039, 238163194).
Victorian Births, Deaths & Marriages Index — birth registered St Kilda (1878) and death registered Cheltenham (1946).
Brighton General Cemetery Records.
Australian Athletics Historical Results — early national and Australasian championship placements (East Melbourne Harriers). VFL Records — St Kilda and Carlton player listings confirming Blake’s dual sporting career.