Ellen Fullard-Leo

Ellen Fullard-Leo (1884–1974) was a South African-born American supporter of amateur athletics. Born in South Africa, she married Leslie Fullard-Leo in 1908. The couple moved abroad in 1909, eventually moving to Honolulu after visiting in 1915. While in South Africa she developed an interest in swimming, and set up women's swimming clubs there and in other cities she later lived in. She became part of the Hawaiian Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), and the first female member of the AAU's National Executive Committee.

Fullard-Leo spent much of her life in Hawaii promoting amateur athletics, helping to form the American Olympic Association and later its Hawaiian chapter. She was a sportswriter for The Honolulu Advertiser for multiple decades, and was listed in the Hawaiʻi Sports Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

While living in Hawaii, Ellen Fullard-Leo and her husband purchased most of Palmyra Atoll. The atoll was occupied by the United States government in 1939 to support action taken during World War II. After a multi-year legal dispute, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the atoll belonged to the Fullard-Leos in 1947.

Early life Ellen Barber Fullard-Leo was born in Barrydale, Cape Colony (now South Africa), on June 25, 1884, to father William Fullard and mother Johanna Hermina Susanna Minnaar. Her father descended from Irish settlers, while her mother descended from French Huguenots. She grew up on an ostrich farm. She had five older step-brothers, 12 older full brothers, one older sister, and one younger sibling. Her family also included 12 other boys who grew up alongside them but were not officially adopted. In 1891 at age 7, Ellen was sent to a boarding school in Swellendam. She was later homeschooled, before being trained for missionary work at Huguenot College from age 14.

From 1902 to 1908 Ellen lived and worked in Cape Town and Johannesburg. In 1908 she founded the first women's swim club in Johannesburg.

In 1908 Ellen sailed to England and from there to New York City. She married Leslie Leo, an Australian-born friend from Johannesburg 19 years older than her, on June 24, 1908. The two shared an interest in swimming. Their first son, Leslie Vincent Fullard-Leo, was born on September 6, 1909. In 1914 Ellen Fullard-Leo founded the first women's swimming club of Victoria, becoming its president. Her husband was also an enthusiast for amateur athletics, and she assisted him with coaching track and field. She organized Royal Life Saving Society courses in 1917, for both men and women. These were the only Royal Life Saving Society courses to take place in the United States, and created Hawaii's first lifeguards. The Fullard-Leos formed the Palmyra Copra Company (Copra Co.), registered in the Territory of Hawaii. Ellen Fullard-Leo was officially the secretary-treasurer. Her family home in Waikīkī became held by an investment entity controlled by her family, and was later redeveloped into commercial property.