# Peter Snell

> New Zealand athlete (1938–2019)

**Wikidata**: [Q52659](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q52659)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Snell)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/peter-snell

## Summary
Peter Snell (17 December 1938 – 12 December 2019) was a New Zealand middle-distance athlete best known as a specialist in the 800 metres and 1500 metres. He was a prominent athletics competitor with a recorded international work period from 1960 to 1964 and held multiple national and institutional honours and affiliations.

## Biography
- Born: 17 December 1938
- Died: 12 December 2019
- Nationality: New Zealand
- Education: Q129421; Q597236 (as recorded in source properties)
- Known for: Middle-distance running; specialization in the 800 metres and 1500 metres
- Employer(s): University of California, Davis; Washington State University (affiliations recorded in source material)
- Field(s): Middle-distance running; athletics (track and field)
- Aliases: Peter George Snell; Sir Peter George Snell; Sir Peter Snell
- Active work period: 1960 – 1964 (work_period_start: 1960; work_period_end: 1964)

## Contributions
- Athletic specialization: Competed as a middle-distance runner with focus on the 800 metres and 1500 metres (events explicitly connected to the subject in source material).
- Institutional affiliations: Served in roles or had formal affiliations with University of California, Davis and Washington State University (both listed under "Affiliated with" in the provided data).
- Recognition and honours: Received formal honours recorded in the source material, including membership and officer ranks of the Order of the British Empire and an honorary doctorate from Massey University.
Note: the provided source material does not list specific publications, patents, businesses founded, or named technical standards attributable to Peter Snell.

## FAQs
Q: When was Peter Snell born and when did he die?
A: Peter Snell was born on 17 December 1938 and died on 12 December 2019.

Q: What sport and events was Peter Snell associated with?
A: He was a New Zealand athletics competitor and middle-distance runner, associated specifically with the 800 metres and the 1500 metres.

Q: Where did Peter Snell have institutional affiliations?
A: The source material records affiliations with the University of California, Davis and Washington State University.

Q: What honours did Peter Snell receive?
A: The provided material records membership/appointment ranks in the Order of the British Empire (Member and Officer are listed) and an honorary doctorate from Massey University.

Q: What were Peter Snell’s active years as recorded in the source?
A: His recorded work period spans from 1960 to 1964.

Q: Under what other names is Peter Snell known?
A: He is also recorded as Peter George Snell, Sir Peter George Snell, and Sir Peter Snell.

## Why They Matter
Peter Snell matters in the historical record of athletics because the sourced data identifies him as a New Zealand middle-distance specialist tied directly to the canonical middle-distance events (800 m and 1500 m) and as an athletics competitor with a concentrated international work period (1960–1964). His recognition by national and academic institutions — recorded honours in the Order of the British Empire and an honorary doctorate from Massey University — indicate institutional acknowledgement of his contributions to sport. Institutional affiliations with major universities (University of California, Davis and Washington State University) show continued involvement with academic or athletic communities beyond his primary competition years. The breadth of identifiers and aliases in major databases and the sitelink_count (38) reflect sustained reference and documentation in public knowledge systems.

## Notable For
- Being identified in source material as a New Zealand athlete and middle-distance runner (800 m and 1500 m).
- Birth and death dates: 17 December 1938 – 12 December 2019.
- Recorded work period: 1960 to 1964.
- Affiliations with University of California, Davis and Washington State University.
- Honours recorded in the source: Member of the Order of the British Empire; Officer of the Order of the British Empire; honorary doctor of Massey University.
- Multiple aliases and honorific forms, including Peter George Snell and Sir Peter George Snell.
- Extensive coverage in public databases (sitelink_count: 38; numerous structured identifiers recorded).

## Body

### Early life and identity
- Peter Snell is recorded with full personal name and aliases: Peter George Snell; Sir Peter George Snell; Sir Peter Snell.
- Date of birth is recorded as 17 December 1938 (structured property P569).
- Date of death is recorded as 12 December 2019 (structured property P570).
- Nationality / citizenship is recorded as New Zealand (citizenship: Q664).

### Athletic specialization and career span
- The subject is connected in the source material to middle-distance running and athletics competition. Related event entries explicitly include the 800 metres and the 1500 metres.
- The source records a work period start of 1960 and a work period end of 1964, defining the central years of his competitive or primary professional activity.

### Institutional affiliations and employers
- University of California, Davis is explicitly listed under "Affiliated with" in the provided material. The UC Davis summary included in the source confirms it is a major public university in the United States and notes relevant institutional context (inception 1905, etc.).
- Washington State University is also listed under "Affiliated with" in the provided material; the source notes it as a public university in Pullman, Washington.
- These two institutional connections are the principal employers/affiliations recorded in the supplied data.

### Education
- The structured properties list two "educated_at" entries as Q129421 and Q597236. The source material provides these QIDs but does not expand them into human-readable institution names within the supplied text. Those two QIDs are therefore the recorded education properties for Peter Snell in the provided source.

### Honours and awards
- The source material includes entries under "Awards / Recognition" naming:
  - Member of the Order of the British Empire (listed as a Thing in the source).
  - Officer of the Order of the British Empire (also listed).
  - honorary doctor of Massey University (award in New Zealand).
- Additional award-related structured properties and award_received QIDs are recorded in the structured-properties block (for example: award_received: Q12201526, Q10762848, Q95990222, Q23049765, Q131837484). The source lists these QIDs but does not expand them into descriptive labels beyond the human-readable awards above.

### Contributions and outputs
- The provided material documents Peter Snell primarily as an athlete — a middle-distance runner and athletics competitor — connected to the 800 m and 1500 m events. No specific publications, patents, companies founded, or named technical standards are recorded in the supplied source material.
- Institutional engagement beyond athletic competition is evidenced by recorded affiliations with University of California, Davis and Washington State University, indicating roles or associations with academic institutions after or during athletic activity (as provided).

### Identifiers and structured-data footprint
- The source supplies numerous structured-data identifiers and properties tied to Peter Snell. Selected entries and their recorded values from the provided material include:
  - P18: Peter Snell 1964.jpg
  - P213: 0000000051156129
  - P214: 31779685
  - P244: no2007086255
  - P373: Peter Snell
  - P409: 53423024
  - P569 (birth date): +1938-12-17T00:00:00Z
  - P570 (death date): +2019-12-12T00:00:00Z
  - P646: /m/01z99j
  - P1146: 14357673
  - P1225: 10615570
  - P1263: 870/000173351
  - P1285: 01000052344
  - P1315: 1535917
  - P1417: biography/Peter-Snell
  - P1447: sn/peter-snell-1
  - P1559: Peter Snell
  - P1741: 154618
  - P2048: 179.0
  - P2067: 80.0
  - P2163: 1681414
  - P2924: 5620989
  - P2949: Snell-3939
  - P3171: peter-snell
  - P3219: peter-snell
  - P3222: peter-snell
  - P3368: 724896
  - P3417: Peter-Snell-4
  - P3430: w6ss52z5
  - P3544: 44361
  - P3765: 295420
  - P3884: 35307
  - P3925: 6230
  - P4056: peter-snell
  - P4342: Peter_Snell
  - P4418: S/Peter-Snell
  - P4548: 35482
  - P5421: 81927
  - P5815: peter-snell
  - P8286: 74357
  - P10242: 05430/eu_s_2499/s2499
  - P10832: E39PBJmDjJQvrVfvVcDdkyBpT3
  - P14105: 3000011602
- Additional metadata entries from the source: sitelink_count: 38; wikipedia_title: Peter Snell; instance_of: Q5 (human).

### Coverage, documentation, and legacy signals
- The provided material indicates extensive documentation across databases and web resources (sitelink_count: 38 and many identifier entries), demonstrating broad archival and reference presence in public knowledge systems.
- The presence of formal honours and an honorary doctorate recorded in the source attest to institutional recognition of his career and contributions to sport.

### Summary chronology (selected dates)
- Born: 17 December 1938.
- Recorded active/work period: 1960 (start) to 1964 (end).
- Died: 12 December 2019.

### Notes and limits of source material
- The supplied material is rich in structured identifiers, honour listings, affiliations, and event-type connections (800 m and 1500 m) but does not enumerate competition results, specific race records, published papers, books, or technology/product contributions. All statements above are constrained to the facts and identifiers explicitly provided in the source material.

## References

1. [The greatest athlete NZ has had': Olympian Sir Peter Snell has died, age 80. The New Zealand Herald](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12293792)
2. [Fallece Peter Snell, leyenda olímpica del mediofondo. 2019](https://as.com/masdeporte/2019/12/14/atletismo/1576337866_298117.html)
3. All-Athletics.com
4. The London Gazette 42685
5. The London Gazette 43531
6. [Source](https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/new-year-honours-list-2002)
7. [Source](https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/special-honours-list-1-august-2009)
8. [Source](https://tamiro.massey.ac.nz/nodes/view/12233)
9. [Source](http://hdl.handle.net/10179/3419)
10. Encyclopædia Britannica Online
11. SNAC
12. World Athletics database
13. [Muere Peter Snell, uno de los grandes de los Juegos. 2019](https://elpais.com/deportes/2019/12/14/actualidad/1576322994_698749.html)
14. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
15. Quora
16. [Source](https://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/expertise/phd-student-profiles/phd-student-profiles_home.cfm)