David Wilkie MBE (1954 - 2024)
A Legend Passes, His Legacy In & Out Of The Pool Lives On. An Obituary and Tributes follow... with sincere thanks to Peter Heatley for a treasure trove of photographs, Karen Pickering for a memory that speaks volumes, and Steve Nash for the poem he wrote in former teammate David's honour
Between Henry Taylor in 1908 and Adam Peaty in 2021, the "best swimmer Britain ever had" was David Wilkie.
Many fond memories of the man and his achievements flooded back when I heard of David's passing much earlier today just a couple of months after he'd celebrated his 70th birthday in the midst of a battle with cancer.
In the pool, his pioneering punch in the 200m breaststroke as the only non-American winner of a men’s Olympic title at the Montreal 1976 Games will forever be the measure of the man’s sporting immortality. His kindness, gentle manner and popularity with his teammates are also hallmarks of his legacy.
