Kennard Neil Bates (30 May 1928 – 14 July 2003) was a New Zealand middle-distance athlete who represented his country at the 1950 British Empire Games.

Neil Bates
Personal information
Birth nameKennard Neil Bates
Born(1928-05-30)30 May 1928
Died14 July 2003(2003-07-14) (aged 75)
Sport
CountryNew Zealand
SportTrack and field
Achievements and titles
National finals1 mile champion (1949)

Hailing from Stratford and representing West Coast North Island, Bates won the New Zealand junior 1 mile title in 1947, recording a time of 4:22.8.[1][2] In 1949, he progressed to the senior ranks and won the men's 1 mile title at the New Zealand athletics championships, in a time of 4:18.2.[1][2] The following year, he represented New Zealand at the 1950 British Empire Games in Auckland in the men's 1 mile,[3] where he ran a time of 4:25.8 to finish sixth in his heat and did not progress to the final.[4]

Bates died on 14 July 2003, and his ashes were buried at Hillcrest Cemetery, Whakatāne.[5][6]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Amateur athletics". Opunake Times. 18 February 1949. p. 4. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  2. ^ a b Hollings, Stephen (December 2016). "National champions 1887–2016" (PDF). Athletics New Zealand. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  3. ^ "Neil Bates". New Zealand Olympic Committee. 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Neil Bates". Commonwealth Games Federation. 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Death search: registration number 2003/15693". Births, deaths & marriages online. Department of Internal Affairs. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Cemeteries search". Whakatāne District Council. Retrieved 16 May 2020.