Eric Henry Liddell

Liddell competing in a relay

Not one person would have believed if they had not seen him run! With arms flailing, his mouth open, and head flung back, the Scottish runner had the most unlikely running style. Born in China to a pair of Scottish missionaries in early 1902, Eric Liddell brought both honor and pride to Scotland as well as to God. Even though, he began breaking records in only his senior year of high school, Eric “was entirely without vanity.” (Voelkel) The Scottish runner broke multiple records including the 100 meter sprint. At only age 22, Eric refused to race in the 100 meter sprint on Sunday, because he considered it a sin to race on the Lord’s Day. Liddell acts as a hero to me not only because of his love for his God and Savior, but because he is an inspiration to the entire sports world.

After living in China for 5 years, the Liddell family came back to England as a break from serving as missionaries. When Mr. and Mrs. Liddell left, Eric and his brother stayed back in England to stay at a boarding school for boys. He and his brother excelled in most of the sports they came across but mostly rugby and track. When Eric matured, his classmates elected him as the captain of the school’s rugby and cricket team. After generating a record in the 100-yard dash that would stand for 80 years, he was voted as Eltham College’s best overall athlete. All of Eric’s successes did not go to his head though and he remained devoted to God. George Robertson, the Headmaster of the boarding school once said “There was no false pride about him [Eric Liddell], but he knew what he stood for [God].” (Voelkel)

Eric Liddell kept this attitude throughout his time at Edinburgh University and his entire life, but the biggest test of his faith came before the 1924 Olympics. Tom McKerchar, the athletic director of Edinburgh University, had just informed Eric the date of the 100-yard dash heats during the Paris Olympics that year: Sunday, July 6th. The star athlete replied without hesitation and said, “Then I’m not running . . . And if I start ignoring one of God’s commands, I may as well ignore all of them. But I can not do that because I love God too much.” (Voelkel) Liddell believed that honoring the Sabbath not only meant to go to church but it meant that he could not compete in the Olympics on the Lord’s Day. Even though he was criticized greatly by the public for making this decision, Eric did not change his mind and stood up for what he believed. Instead of running the 100-yard dash, Eric decided to run the 440-meter run; which he had not ever trained for. Still Eric ran as well as he had ever run and not only brought home Scotland’s first ever gold medal, but he also set a new world record.

The next year, Liddell decided that he wanted to travel to China to teach at a Chinese College. Although almost nobody completely understood his decision, thousands saw him off at the railroad station. At the college, Eric taught three different classes while still trying to re-learn the Chinese language. Around this time the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The Japanese authorities forced about 1,800 foreign residents of China into a small compound which used to be a mission school. Through this whole time, Eric carried water for the sick, taught chemistry out of a hand-written textbook that he had written from memory and taught Bible classes. Even though Eric Liddell experienced the same conditions as everyone else, he acted as if he lived in perfect conditions. After a couple months though, Eric’s personality changed. He began complaining of head aches and several months before the camp’s release, Eric died of a brain tumor. The entire camp attended his funeral service for the man who had just turned forty-three.

Eric Liddell acts as a hero to me not only because he is an inspiration for his sports accomplishments, but also because of his dedication to Jesus Christ. No matter what pressure people put on him, he always obeyed and trusted God. He gave up a gold medal just because he believed a sin to run on Sunday. When he lived in the camp in China, he never showed any signs of discouragement, and always brought happiness to the rest of the camp. Even though he underwent much pressure to take back this decision, he stuck to what he believed was right. Eric’s life of trust, perseverance and love makes Eric a hero to me.