John Wrighton

John Wrighton

Medal record
Competitor for  Great Britain
Men’s Athletics
European Championships
	1958 Stockholm	400 metres
	1958 Stockholm	4×400 m relay

John Derek Wrighton MB, BS, FRCS (born 10 March 1933) in Ilford, Essex, is a retired track and field athlete, who represented Great Britain at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy. He won two gold medals at the 1958 European Championships in Stockholm, Sweden: in the men's individual 400 metres and in the 4x400 metres relay, alongside Ted Sampson, John MacIsaac, and John Salisbury. Known for both his pronounced lean when running and his erratic pacing, John Wrighton and John Salisbury marked the beginning of the renaissance of British quarter miling after the second World War.^[1]

From 1958, Wrighton served on a short-service commission with the Royal Navy, achieving the rank of Surgeon Lieutenant, after which he was placed on the emergency list and retired in May 1961. He then completed his medical training becoming FRCS in 1967 and made his home in Dorset where he worked for many years as a family doctor.

References

1. Watman, Mel: History of British Athletics 1968, Pub Robert Hale Ltd. p54

• British Olympic Committee
• Wrighton awarded doctorate by Bournemouth University