Eric Liddell: Pure Gold

Eric Liddell's life began and ended in China. Born in Tientsin as the second son of missionary parents, he died in a Japanese internment camp at Weihsien a few months before the end of the Second World War.

Through an inspiring film, the world knows something of the athlete who ran for gold at the Paris Olympics in 1924. This is the larger story of the man who went the distance in life, and of the woman who ran with him in his greatest race.

"A few months ago while eating breakfast in Southampton, England, I asked out young waitress if she recognized the song playing over the restaurant's speakers.

'I think it's the theme from Chariot's of Fire' she said.

'Have you seen the film?' I asked.

'No,' she replied, 'but somehow I just know that's the song.'

In 1981, this low-budget British film took the world by joyful surprise and garnered four Academy Awards including "Best Picture." Chariots of Fire has become a classic, still inspiring audiences through television and video showings around the world. But like most movies, it freely blends dramatic invention with the facts.

This book is the life story of Eric Liddell before and after his Olympic triumph at Paris in 1924. Who was he? What shaped him and forged the integrity that became the hallmark of his life? With the athletic world at his feet, why did he leave Scotland and spend the rest of his years in China as a Christian missionary? And who was the high school girl he met there who captured his heart and brought such joy as his wife?

Shy and retiring by nature, Liddell was by no means a charismatic personality, yet he drew people to him in a remarkable way. As a runner, his presence at a Scottish track meet often meant an extra 5,000 spectators beyond the normal crowd. But instead of using his athletic fame for personal advantage, it became his platform to serve others.

For those who already admire Eric Liddell, and for those who want to meet a man who 'lived better then he preached,' this book is written."
—David McCasland

A Note to Parents:

This book is used for Units 25 and 26 of Exploring World History from the Notgrass Company. They consider this an excellent presentation of Liddell's life but also want to alert you to a couple of problems in the book's content:

• A curse word is used in a quotation on page 94.


• Page 205 contains a brief description of the atrocities that Japanese soldiers committed in the Chinese city of Nanking.


• On page 270 is a reference to immoral behavior by teenagers.