Donald Dinnie
| Donald Dinnie | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Donald Dinnie 1837 Birse, Scotland |
| Died | 1916 (age 79) |
| Occupation | Highland Games Strongman |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Competition record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Highland Games | ||
Representing  Scotland
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| Scottish Highland Games Championships | ||
| Champion | 1856 | |
| Champion | 1857 | |
| Champion | 1858 | |
| Champion | 1859 | |
| Champion | 1860 | |
| Champion | 1861 | |
| Champion | 1862 | |
| Champion | 1863 | |
| Champion | 1864 | |
| Champion | 1865 | |
| Champion | 1866 | |
| Champion | 1867 | |
| Champion | 1868 | |
| Champion | 1869 | |
| Champion | 1870 | |
| Champion | 1871 | |
| Champion | 1872 | |
| Champion | 1873 | |
| Champion | 1874 | |
| Champion | 1875 | |
| Champion | 1876 | |
Donald Dinnie (1837–1916) was a Scottish strongman, born at Balnacraig, Birse, near Aboyne, Aberdeenshire. He has been recognized as "The Nineteenth Century's Greatest Athlete". Dinnie's athletic career spanned over 50 years, and over 11,000 successful competitions.
Donald Dinnie, the son of a stonemason, won his first sporting event, at the age of 16, in the nearby village of Kincardine O'Neil. He defeated the local wrestling strongman David Forbes, and took first place which included £1 prize money. In 1860, Dinnie undertook a feat of strength that was to give birth to a long-lasting legacy. He carried two boulders, with a combined weight of 775 pounds (352 kg), for a distance of about 5 yards (4.6 m), across the Potarch Bridge and back. Each boulder had an iron ring fixed to it, so that scaffolds could be attached from which workmen could repair the bridge, over the River Dee near Kincardine O'Neil. The original stones are now located outside the 18th-century Potarch Hotel, on the south bank of the river by the Potarch Bridge.
As time passed, Dinnie became an all-round athlete, growing and building his skills over a 20-year reign as Scottish champion (1856–1876). He excelled in sprint, hurdles, long and high jump, pole vault, putting the stone, hammer throw, tossing the caber and wrestling. The BBC website says "Comparing his best performances long before the Athens Olympics of 1896 leads one to imagine him capable of winning seven gold, a silver, and a bronze medal". However, by 1896, Dinnie was approaching the twilight of his sporting career.
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Wikipedia