Bill Collins (racecaller)

Bill Collins (racecaller)

William Henry "Bill" Collins OAM (1928 – 1997) was an Australian racecaller who earned the reputation for being able to accurately call the winner of even the closest of races. Known as "The Accurate One", he was well known for his call of the Melbourne Cup each year. One of his most notable commentaries was the 1986 Cox Plate, dubbed the "Race of the Century". Collins also called important races in the UK, USA, South Africa, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Collins' radio career began in the early 1950s in Sale, Victoria, and in 1953 he moved to Melbourne where he worked as a racecaller for the radio station 3DB, and appeared on television in the musical comedy program "Sunny Side Up".

In 1987, Collins received an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for his services to horseracing, and was also inducted into the "Australian Racing Hall of Fame". He called his last race on Easter Saturday 1988 on radio 3UZ,as 3DB had already dropped it's racing coverage.

In 2004, he was honoured posthumously at the Moonee Valley Racecourse, home of the W.S. Cox Plate, with the 'Kingston Town Greatness Award' for his services to the event. [http://www.mvrc.net.au/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=90&Itemid=179] Moonee Valley Racecourse also features the "Bill Collins Mile".

Resources

* [http://www.racingmuseum.com.au/hof/inductees/willcollins.htm "Inductees", Champions: Australian Racing Museum and Hall of Fame]
* [http://horseracingmagazine.com/ManageArticle.asp?C=230&A=8689 "Horse Racing Personalities", Horse Racing Magazine]
* [http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~bcollins/general/famous/william.htm Collins family history]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Bill Collins — or Billy Collins may refer to: Bill Collins (athlete), Masters athletics world record sprinter Bill Collins (outfielder) (1882–1961), American baseball player Bill Collins (footballer), aka Buster Collins (born 1920), Northern Irish footballer… …   Wikipedia

  • Collins (surname) — The surname Collins has a variety of likely origins in Britain and Ireland: Anglo Saxon: A patronymic surname based on the name Colin, an English diminutive form of Nicholas. In England, Collins usually signified son of Colin. Irish: cuilein =… …   Wikipedia

  • Race of the Century (Horse racing) — The W.S. Cox Plate, held annually at Melbourne s Moonee Valley racecourse, is one of the most significant races on the Australian calendar. Run at weight for age, the race had been won by some of the greats of the Australian turf since its… …   Wikipedia

  • World of Sport (Australian TV series) — World of Sport was an Australian sports program that was broadcast live by HSV 7 in Melbourne from 1959 to 1987 on Sundays between 11am and 2pm. By the end of its run, the show was claimed as the world s longest running sports program.A unique… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”