Laurie Taitt facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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| Full name | John Lawrence Taitt | |||||||||||||
| Nationality | British | |||||||||||||
| Born | 28 March 1934 Georgetown, Demerara-Mahaica, British Guiana |
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| Died | 18 October 2006 (aged 72) Croydon, Greater London, England |
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| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | |||||||||||||
| Weight | 163 lb (74 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||
| Country | British Guiana, Great Britain | |||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Hurdles | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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John Lawrence Taitt (born March 28, 1934 – died October 18, 2006) was a talented British athlete. He was known for his skill in hurdling, which is a type of race where runners jump over barriers called hurdles. Laurie, as he was often called, was born in Georgetown, which was then part of British Guiana (now known as Guyana).
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Laurie Taitt's Athletic Journey
Laurie Taitt started his international sports career at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. This big event took place in Cardiff, Wales. He represented British Guiana and showed his potential by reaching the semi-finals in the 120 yards hurdles race.
Competing for Great Britain and England
Four years later, in 1962, Laurie Taitt competed for Great Britain. He reached the semi-finals of the 110 metres hurdles at the 1962 European Athletics Championships in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.
Just two months after that, he competed for England at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia. This was a very successful competition for him! He won a bronze medal in the 120 yards hurdles, finishing the race in 14.7 seconds. He was also supposed to compete in the high jump, but he decided to focus all his energy on the hurdles instead.
Olympic Dreams and Later Races
In 1964, Laurie Taitt had the amazing opportunity to compete in the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. He ran in the 110 metres hurdles race. He finished fourth in his heat with a time of 14.5 seconds. Unfortunately, this wasn't quite fast enough for him to move on to the semi-finals.
Two years later, in 1966, Laurie competed in his final British Empire and Commonwealth Games. This event was held in Kingston, Jamaica. He made it to the final of the 120 yards hurdles and finished in fifth place, with a time of 14.3 seconds. His last major competition was the 1966 European Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, where he was unable to reach the final of the 110 metres hurdles.
Later Life
Laurie Taitt passed away on October 18, 2006, in Croydon, Greater London, England. He was 72 years old. He is remembered as a dedicated athlete who proudly represented his country in many major international competitions.
