ALAN DAWE

5 feet 10 inch (179cm) Guard

1960 Olympic Games

The primary school youngster had just won a medal for his performances in Aussie Rules football (AFL). Such was his talent that he was invited to attend a special camp for up and coming Aussie Rules players. Although he was “chuffed” about winning the medal he hesitated about attending the camp. He loved his tennis at the Kingston courts but he had also just started playing this “new” game basketball at the local YMCA. He decided to “knock-back” the Aussie Rules and play basketball. Years later when asked why he did this he simply replied “I just loved the basketball.” Alan Dawe was born on the 4th of June 1934. He started playing basketball with the YMCA in Adelaide in 1946 at the age of twelve. There were no junior club or district competitions or National Junior Championships at that time so the main opportunity to play basketball was at the YMCA. Alan cites his parents as being of great support to him in these early years and for his career. The Kingston Tennis Club developed West Adelaide Basketball Club and it was there that he was encouraged in basketball by Merv Harris and Keith Miller (who went on to become the 1964 Australian Olympic Basketball Team Coach). Alan’s first senior year of playing basketball was with West Adelaide Bear Cats in 1952. In an illustrious career with the Bear Cats Alan went on to play 500 games for West Adelaide from 1952 to 1964. His first premiership with West was in the Jubilee Year 1952 against arch rivals North Adelaide in a game that was played in the Thebarton Town Hall. He won South Australia’s highest basketball award the “Noel Woollacott Medal” in 1958 and 1959. Alan made his first South Australian (SA) senior representative team in 1954. He played for the next ten years on the SA team. Alan and SA won the National Championships in an incredible four year run (1957, 1958, 1959, and 1960) and again in 1963 and 1964. It was true to say during this period of ten years that Alan played for SA they were clearly the dominate State in Australian basketball and Alan was one of the finest players of his era. He captained the SA senior men’s team in 1962 and 1963. Alan is remembered by his team-mates and opponents as a very quick and highly skilled point-guard. He played with great effort and was a natural leader. He was also a prankster at times and pulled 1956 Olympian Algy Ignativicius’s shorts down when Algy was driving for a lay-up in an Adelaide Club game. Algy claims he still made the basket. In 1959 after the Australian Championships held in Sydney (SA defeated NSW 76-64 in the final) he was selected on the Australian Men’s Team for the 1960 Rome Olympics. This team was to be Australia’s first national basketball team to play overseas in a FIBA international tournament.

The Olympic team lived in Adelaide for three months prior to leaving for Rome. This meant players from other States joining Alan and the other SA team members in Adelaide to work during the day and train at night. The team also played in the SA District competition. The players had to raise 700 pounds each to pay for their expenses to get to Rome and to play in the competition. Alan comments, “We all knew that we had to survive the Qualification Tournament in Bologna to get any recompense of our money raised.” The Olympic Team underwent a long and arduous trip to Bologna, Italy via Darwin and the Philippines (where they played matches). In Bologna the opposition were more experienced, had better match practice, and were more familiar with the officiating and the ball used in games. Alan recalls, “Our preparation for such an event was sadly lacking.....our knowledge of our European opponents was very little.....I think we were overawed to some extent by the oppositions offensive and defensive skills compared to what we experienced back home. But the team never lacked desire or enthusiasm.” Alan played the role of starting or back-up point guard throughout the tournament. Unfortunately the team was unable to win through the Qualification Tournament in Bologna and did not make the Olympic Finals in Rome. However the team was able to have access to the Olympic venues and were able to eat in the Olympic Village and go to all the events. “The greatest thrill for me was being selected as an Olympian and then leaving Australia for the first time in my life....it was an exciting adventure,” says Alan. Alan is also of the view that while the 1960 Olympic Basketball Team did not get great results at that time many of the team went on to have a great influence on basketball in Australia as players and as coaches. He cites Lindsay Gaze, John Heard, Terry Charlton and Bill Wyatt as examples of that great influence. On the trip home on the “MV Strathaid” the team was accompanied by the 1960 West Indian cricket team which was on its way to Australia for the famous “tied test” series. After the 1960 Olympics Alan retired from playing basketball because of a knee injury. He went on to become one of Australia’s best coaches. He coached the South Australian senior men’s team from 1969 to 1976 and winning the National Title in 1970, 1972 and 1973. He coached West Adelaide from 1964 to 1975 and coached one year in the NBL with Glenelg in the 1987 season. Alan was appointed Assistant Coach for Australian Men’s Basketball Team for the 1978 World Championships and the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. He was awarded the Basketball Australian Award of Merit in 1982. In 1991 he was awarded the Apollo Commemorative Medal-All Star Coach 1969-1991. He was inducted into the Basketball SA Hall of Fame in 1999. In 2012 he was inducted as a Legend into the West Adelaide Basketball Club Hall of Fame. Alan was a Torch Bearer for the 2000 Sydney Olympics and was awarded the Australia Sports Medal in 2000 for contributions to sport. He is retired and lives in Adelaide.