Edgar Mountain

Edgar Mountain was a brilliant junior who finished fourth in the 1920 Olympic 800 final with a new UK junior record of 1:54.6. On his return from Antwerp he matched his Olympic performance by winning the Surrey AC 880 y Club Championship in 1:55.4. A Cambridge blue, he won the 880y against Oxford in 1921-22, having finished second in 1920-21. He was at his best in Stockholm in September 1921 when he set a new world best for 500 m to beat Mel Sheppard’s previous record by two seconds and then set a career best for 800m the following day. Mountain had a wide-ranging talent and shared in UK relay records at 4×440y (Surrey AC – 1920) and the 4×Mile (CUAC – 1922). In his second Olympics he was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 800 in 1924 and this effectively ended his athletic career. He settled in South Africa and became Emeritus Professor of Geology at Rhodes University. A specialist in South African geological formations, he discovered several new minerals, one of which, Mountainite, bears his name.

Personal Bests: 440y – 50.6e (1922); 800 – 1:53.8e (1920).