Profile: Eric Liddell

With the Olympic Games taking place in China, the name of Eric Liddell comes to mind.

Eric was, of course, the runner who took gold in the 1924 Olympics before devoting his life to teaching and mission in China, where he had been born to Scottish missionary parents.

His story was made into a film, Chariots of Fire.

Eric was a world class sprinter who was being talked of as a potential gold medallist in the 100 metres in the 1924 Olympics. But when the schedule for the Olympics was announced, the heats were set for a Sunday. Eric decided that as a Christian who honoured the Sabbath, he would not run in the 100 metres.

In Chariots of Fire Eric is portrayed as only finding out on the boat to France that the event was scheduled for Sunday and being pressured by the Prince of Wales to sacrifice his principles rather than let his country down. Dramatic theatre but not factual!

Eric knew months previously and geared his training towards the 200 and 400 metres in which he was also an excellent runner. In fact the British Olympic Association tried to get the 100 metres switched from Sunday.

He took bronze in that 1924 Olympic 200 metres final and then went on not only to win gold in the 400 but also to set a new world record of 47.6 seconds in the process. (Shown in photo below)

His decision to go to China meant that 1925 was his last season in competitive athletics. While in China he did no formal training but continued to run when the opportunity offered itself.

In 1925 he set off to China where he served with the London Missionary Society initially as a teacher and subsequently as a travelling evangelist. He remained – but for two periods of leave  – in China until his death in a Japanese internment camp in Weishien, China, in 1945.

Having been born in China of parents who gave their lives to mission work there, it was natural that Eric would feel a strong call to that country. However, it appears that he was initially a somewhat reluctant missionary, unsure if he could handle the task.