Norman Gilbert

Norman Gilbert started his involvement with swimming and water polo at the age of 16 and dedicated the rest of his life to the two sports. Gilbert was a member of the Aston Old Edwardians Swimming Club, and eventually became their honorary secretary, one of the many official positions he held over the years. He was on the executive committee of the Birmingham District of the ASA for many years, and was also a starter and judge. Gilbert was the honorary secretary of the Birmingham and District Water Polo League and was also a player and referee. He refereed international water polo matches in the United Kingdom and on the Continent. He refereed three matches at the 1924 Paris Olympics, including Belgium’s 5-1 win over Czechoslovakia in the semi-final.

An all-round sportsman, in addition to being a rare left-handed water polo player, Gilbert was a fine rugby player and cricketer at the Old Edwardians Club. He also used to broadcast on Birmingham area water polo matches on the radio.

Gilbert, who was an accountant by profession, was a member of the International Water Polo Selection Committee of the ASA until just before his death. He died in 1928 at his home in Birchfield, in the Handsworth area of Birmingham, at just 46-years-of-age.