About Bonnie Mealing
Lived 1912 – 2002 (aged 89). Bonnie Mealing was an Australian swimmer.
Phillomena Alecia "Bonnie" Mealing (28 July 1912 – 1 January 2002) was an Australian freestyle and backstroke swimmer of the 1920s and 1930s, who won a silver medal in the 100-metre backstroke at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the first Australian to win a medal in backstroke.
At the age of 14 or 15, she was selected for the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam after only a year of competing at the national level. After a long three-month sea voyage, and a bout of homesickness, she gained weight during the voyage, finishing third and fourth in her heat of the 100-metre freestyle and backstroke respectively, and was eliminated. This brought condemnation from Australian journalists.
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Important facts
Related people
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Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Bonnie Mealing's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Bonnie Mealing?
Australian swimmer, Olympic silver medallist (1912–2002)
When was Bonnie Mealing born?
Bonnie Mealing was born on 28 July 1912 in Woolloomooloo.
When did Bonnie Mealing die?
Bonnie Mealing died on 1 January 2002 in Sydney.
What was Bonnie Mealing's occupation?
Bonnie Mealing was a swimmer.
What nationality was Bonnie Mealing?
Bonnie Mealing was Australian.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Bonnie Mealing. https://biography.guide/bonnie-mealing/
MLA: "Bonnie Mealing." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/bonnie-mealing/.
Chicago: "Bonnie Mealing." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/bonnie-mealing/.
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