Denise Spencer

Denise Spencer
Personal information
Birth nameDenise Dowling Spencer
Full nameDenise Dowling Henderson
NationalityAustralian
Born(1929-09-09)9 September 1929
Roma, Queensland, Australia
Died6 September 1998(1998-09-06) (aged 68)
Tugun, Queensland, Australia
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesFreestyle
Medal record
Representing  Australia
British Empire and Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 1950 Auckland 4x110yd freestyle relay

Denise Dowling Henderson (née Spencer;[1][2] 9 September 1929 – 6 September 1998) was an Australian freestyle swimmer. She competed in two events at the 1948 Summer Olympics.[3]

Henderson was born in the Queensland town of Roma in 1929, and until the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro was the only Olympic athlete from the town.[4] In 1948, Roma Town Council named a street Spencer Street in her honour, being the location of the swimming baths where she learned to swim.[5] In September 1950, she married stock manager and auctioneer George Henderson.[6]

Henderson died on 6 September 1998 at John Flynn Hospital in Tugun on the Gold Coast.[7]

  1. ^ "DENISE NOW MRS". The Courier-mail. No. 4305. Queensland, Australia. 13 September 1950. p. 3. Retrieved 2 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ "Maranoa Sporting Wall of Fame". Maranoa Regional Council. Archived from the original on 4 September 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  3. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Denise Spencer Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  4. ^ Gillespie, Tom (4 August 2016). "Remembering Roma's first Olympian, Denise Spencer". Northern Star. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  5. ^ "FOUR ROMA STREETS RENAMED". Western Star And Roma Advertiser. No. 6281. Queensland, Australia. 29 October 1948. p. 1. Retrieved 2 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "RECORD CROWD WATCHES DENISE WED GEORGE". Western Star. No. 82. Queensland, Australia. 12 September 1950. p. 1. Retrieved 2 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ Death Notice: Henderson, Denise Dowling, Gold Coast Bulletin, 9 September 1998.