Chris Maddocks

Christopher Lloyd Maddocks (born 28 March 1957) is a male retired race walker from Great Britain. He competed in five consecutive Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1984. In his final competitive race, the 50 km walk at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, he overcame a hamstring injury to finish in last place. In completing the race, he set the record as the first British track athlete to compete in five Olympic Games. Following his retirement, he became a sports journalist.

Athletic career Born in Tiverton, Devon, he started in athletics as a cross country runner, and had ambitions to run marathons. He made his first Olympic appearance at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, finishing his race in sixteenth place. At the Games, he finished the race in fourth position.

In November 1989, Maddocks was part of an invited elite field of international race walkers in the New York Marathon. He finished second behind Mexican Carlos Mercenario in a British record 3 hours 14 minutes 37 seconds. The following year, he regained the British 50 km record at Burrator, England, with a winning time of 3 hours 51 minutes 37 seconds.

Maddocks's final international race was at the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics. he fell behind the rest of the athletes. He entered the Stadium Australia as I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers was played over the loudspeakers in his honour, and as the 100,000 crowd cheered him on to finish. His time was 4 hours, 52 minutes and 4 seconds, more than an hour after Robert Korzeniowski won the race. His completion of the race meant that he became the first British track athlete to compete in five Olympic Games. Tessa Sanderson remains the record holder in all sports, having appeared at six Olympic Games for Great Britain.

He won an award for services to athletics at the 2000 British Athletics Writers Awards, having become a freelance journalist following his retirement from professional athletics. He was an analyst for the racewalking events for American television network NBC in 2012 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Olympics. He also commentates at sporting events such as the National 100 mile Centurion Walking championship in 2018.

Personal life Maddocks lives in Devon

Autobiography Chris struggled with his inner demons for many years before writing his autobiography. "Money Walks" was published to coincide with the 2012 Olympics, at which time Chris was a specialist TV sports commentator for NBC. The book is available on Amazon.

Publication Money Walks - An autobiography by five-time Olympian Chris Maddocks (2012). Short Run Press Ltd.