Stanley Arthur Lay, MBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 (27 July 1906 – 12 May 2003) was a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 track and field athlete

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 who competed in javelin throw

Javelin throw

The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...

ing at the 1928 Summer Olympics

1928 Summer Olympics

The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de...

 at Amsterdam, the 1930 British Empire Games

1930 British Empire Games

The 1930 British Empire Games were the first of what later become known as the Commonwealth Games, and were held in Hamilton, in the province of Ontario in Canada from August 16–23, 1930....

 in Hamilton, the 1938 British Empire Games

1938 British Empire Games

The 1938 British Empire Games was the third British Empire Games, the Commonwealth Games being the modern-day equivalent. Held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia from February 5–12, 1938, they were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary...

 in Sydney, and the 1950 British Empire Games

1950 British Empire Games

The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth edition of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between the 4th and 11th of February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the 3rd edition of the games...

 in Auckland.

In 1928 he finished seventh in the javelin throw competition

Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics - Men's javelin throw

The men's javelin throw event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1928 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Thursday, August 2, 1928.Twenty-eight javelin throwers from 18 nations competed.-Medalists:-Records:...

. At the British Empire Games

New Zealand at the Commonwealth Games

Since the first in 1930, New Zealand has competed in all 19 editions of the Commonwealth Games and has won a total of 564 medals including 130 gold....

 he won a gold medal in 1930, and a silver medal in 1938. At the 1950 Empire Games he finished sixth in the javelin throw event.

He was born in New Plymouth

New Plymouth

New Plymouth is the major city of the Taranaki Region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after Plymouth, Devon, England, from where the first English settlers migrated....

. He was a signwriter at Stratford

Stratford, New Zealand

Stratford is the only town in the central Taranaki district of Stratford District, New Zealand. It lies beneath the eastern slopes of Mount Taranaki/Egmont, approximately half-way between New Plymouth and Hawera, near the geographic centre of the Taranaki region. The town has a population of...

, and could not afford the time off to go to the 1934 British Empire Games

1934 British Empire Games

The 1934 British Empire Games were the second of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games. They were held at the White City Stadium in London, England from 4–11 August 1934, apart from the cycling at Fallowfield Stadium, Manchester, and the swimming, which took place at the Empire Pool in Wembley...

 in London.

Lay's best throw of 67.90m was achieved in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 on 7 July 1928 prior to the 1928 Olympics. Officials thought he had broken the world record but they had overlooked Eino Penttilä

Eino Penttilä

Eino Penttilä was a Finnish athlete who mainly competed in the men's javelin throw during his career....

's record throw of 69.88 the previous year. Lay's throw remained the Commonwealth record for 26 years.

At the 1950 Empire Games Lay took the oath on behalf of all compettiors.