Frank Beaurepaire
| Sir Francis Joseph Edmund Beaurepaire | |
|---|---|
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| 66th Lord Mayor of Melbourne | |
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In office 1940–1942 |
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| Preceded by | Arthur Coles |
| Succeeded by | Sir Thomas Sydney Nettlefold |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
13 May 1891 Melbourne, Australia |
| Died | 29 May 1956 (aged 65) |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Australasia
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| Men's swimming | ||
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1908 London | 400m freestyle |
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1908 London | 1500 m freestyle |
Representing  Australia
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1920 Antwerp | 4×200 m freestyle |
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1920 Antwerp | 1500 m freestyle |
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1924 Paris | 4×200 m freestyle |
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1924 Paris | 1500 m freestyle |
Sir Francis "Frank" Joseph Edmund Beaurepaire (13 May 1891 – 29 May 1956) was an Australian distance freestyle swimmer from the 1900s to the 1920s, who won three silver and three bronze medals, from the 1908 Summer Olympics in London to the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, setting 15 world records.
He was also a decorated politician and businessman, serving for ten years in the Victorian Legislative Council and as Lord Mayor of Melbourne and building a multimillion-dollar tyre business empire, Beaurepaires and Olympic Tyres.
Beaurepaire was born to Francis Edmund de Beaurepaire and Mary Edith Inman. Growing up in Melbourne, Beaurepaire was educated at Albert Park State School and Wesley College.
He had his first swimming lesson at the age of four, when his father dropped him into the sea water baths at South Melbourne with a rope tied around his waist. He often practised in the sea, close to where effluent was ejected into Port Phillip Bay. Later, when he had earned more money, he paid two cents to enter the now demolished Stubbs' South Melbourne Baths to train.
His career was nearly ended when he was hospitalized for 12 months with rheumatic fever. However, encouraged by his schoolteacher and South Melbourne barber Tommy Horlock, who later became his coach, Beaurepaire fought off the ailment and resumed training with the Albert Park State School Swimming Club.
In 1906, a few months before his 15th birthday, Beaurepaire won the 220 yd (200 m) and 440 yd (400 m) freestyle at the Victorian championships. In 1908, he captured the 440 yd (400 m), 880 yd and mile freestyle events at the Australian Championships to claim a spot in the 1908 Summer Olympics team. On arrival in London with Horlock, he found that no arrangements had been made to pick them up, so they were forced to live with 16 pounds between them for a month, before officials became aware of their plight.
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