Other names:

ROYCROFT, James William George

ROYCROFT, William George

ROYCROFT, Bill

Born: 17 March 1915

Birthplace: Not available

Nationality: Australia

Sport: Equestrian

ATTENDANCE AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES

Rome 1960

Tokyo 1964

Mexico 1968

Munich 1972

Montreal 1976

AWARDS

Olympic medals:

Gold: 1

Bronze: 2

From Hospital Bed to Gold Medal

During the endurance test of the 1960 eventing event, 45-year-old Bill Roycroft of Australia was thrown from his horse and received a concussion and a broken collarbone. He was sent to a hospital, but he knew that if he withdrew, his team would be disqualified. So the next day, Roycroft left his hospital bed and competed in the jumping test. This allowed the Australians to win gold medals. Over the next 16 years, three of Roycroft's sons represented Australia at the Olympics. Bill himself competed four more times and earned bronze medals in 1968 and 1976 in the eventing team Mixed. His highest placing in the individual event was sixth in 1972.