Peter Mullins (9 July 1926 – 13 April 2012) ^[1] was an Australian decathlete and basketball player. ^[2] He competed in the decathlon at the 1948 Summer Olympics. ^[3] As a basketball player, he played at the 1959 FIBA World Championship on the Canadian team. ^[4] Mullins also coached the UBC Thunderbirds for twenty years, recording more than 330 wins. ^[5]

Early life

Mullins was born in Bondi, Australia in 1926. ^[6] Mullins played hockey, rugby, Australian rules football, table tennis and was swimmer. ^[6] At the age of fifteen, Mullins became a pole vaulter, before moving onto the decathlon. ^[3] He gained his diploma in physical education from the Sydney Teachers' College. ^[5]

Career

In 1946, he broke the Australian record for the decathlon, and was selected to represent Australia in the event at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. ^[3] He finished in sixth place at the Olympics, ^[6] setting another Australian record in the process. ^[3] At the 1949 Australian championships, Mullins won a gold and two bronze, before his focus moved to basketball. ^{[3] [6]}

After moving to the United States, Mullins was offered a scholarship at Washington State University. ^{[3] [6]} After graduating, he moved to Canada and became a member of staff at the University of British Columbia in 1955. ^{[3] [6]} Mullins then went to represent the Canadian basketball team at the 1959 FIBA World Championship. ^[3] He continued playing throughout the 1960s and 1970s, before retiring in 1982. ^[3] Mullins also coached the Canadian basketball team at the 1970 Summer Universiade in Turin, Italy. ^[3] His team at the University of British Columbia also won the Western Canadian University Championships seven times from 1963 to 1975. ^{[6] [5]}

Death

Mullins returned to Australia, where he died in 2012, aged 85. ^{[3] [7]} He was inducted into the British Columbia Basketball Hall of Fame in 2004, and the Dr. Peter Mullins Trophy is award to the best rookie player in universities in Canada. ^{[3] [5]}

References

External links

• Peter Mullins at Australian Athletics Historical Results
• Peter Mullins at FIBA
• Peter Mullins at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com
• Peter Mullins at Olympics.com
• Peter Mullins at Olympedia