Alison Drake (diver)
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13 December 1952
 Alison Drake pictured after a dive during the 1974 Commonwealth Games | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British (English) |
| Born | Alison Jean Drake 13 December 1952 London, England |
| Height | 170 cm (5 ft 7 in) |
| Weight | 55 kg (121 lb) |
Spouse |
Steve Jankowska (after 1978) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Diving |
Event | 3m springboard |
| Club | Basildon SC Derek Beaumont's Diving Academy |
Alison Jean Drake (born 13 December 1952) is a female former diver who competed for England. She competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics and the 1980 Summer Olympics.[1]
Diving
Drake became the English champion when she won the English women's springboard diving championship, at Crystal Palace in 1970 at the age of just 17.
One month earlier she represented England in the 3 metres springboard, at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland.[2][3] Four years later she represented England again in the 3 metres springboard event at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, New Zealand.[4] During the 1976 European Cup in Edinburgh, she finished second in the women's 3-metre event with a score of 418.44, just behind Olympic medalist diver Christa Köhler,[5] having finished third with a score of 276.84 during the second round of compulsory dives.[6]
In March 1978, she won the women's European springboard diving title in Nogent sur Marne, France[7] and followed that up in April by winning a gold medal in the European 1-metre championships in Paris, having recently changed coach and joined Derek Beaumont's Diving Academy.[8] Later that year in December, she won the women's event at the Amateur Swimming Association 1-metre springboard championships in Huddersfield, adding to the 3-metre title she had already won earlier in the season.[9]
Following her retirement from diving, Drake took up a coaching position with the Italian national team.[10]
Outside diving
Drake was working as a bank clerk around 1972[11] and in 1977, completed a Bachelor of Education degree and started a job at Northumberland Park School, near Tottenham Hotspur F.C. later that year[12] as a maths teacher.[8]
