John Mark (athlete)

John Mark was educated at Cranleigh School where he excelled at athletics, and won a place to study at the University of Cambridge.

Whilst at Cambridge he was a noted athlete and rugby forward, although he missed out on achieving his Blue due to injury.

[1] In 1947 Mark finished fourth in the AAA 440 yards and was selected to represent the United Kingdom in the 400 metres in Paris.

Thus on 29 July 1948 he carried the heavy Olympic torch on the final leg of its journey into Wembley Stadium and lit the flame in its specially-designed bowl.

[1] Following the Olympics, Mark worked as a GP in a rural practice in Liss in Hampshire until his retirement.