People Australia

In July 1974, Noel Jago was living in Canberra, at Garran Hall, and was in the fourth and final year of a Forestry degree at the Australian National University. Noel was raised on the North-West coast of Tasmania and was 22 years old.

He was an accomplished marathon runner, having won the Tasmanian Marathon title in 1973, and was in good form, having won the New South Wales Country title as recently as 13 July.

On the 20 July he was scheduled to compete in a race along the shores of Lake Burley Griffin and, close to starting time, he was seen jogging toward and near the start line. He never arrived.

Over the next few days police conducted an intensive search, dragged part of the lake, and searched bushland near its shores. Confusingly, there were several reports that Noel had been seen running through different parts of Canberra in the 24 hours after he was reported missing.

On 27 July there was a newspaper report that the search had been called off. The officer in charge of the inquiry said that they were now hopeful that Noel was alive after an extensive search had failed to find him. Noel’s father, Mr William Jago, of Somerset, Tasmania, flew to Canberra to help to try to find his son and suggested calling on the Army for help.

On 8 August a member of the public spotted a body in the lake, and the ACT Water Police recovered it. The body was identified as Noel Jago and was found near where he disappeared 19 days previously. A funeral notice was later published for a service on 14th August, at the Church of England in Cooee, for interment in the Burnie (Tas.) Cemetery.

As reported on 21st December, the Coroner described the death as “a very tragic accident”. The evidence was more indicative of death by asphyxia than by drowning, resulting from a pebble in the voicebox. Two bruises on his left side were believed to be due to a fall from the retaining wall into the lake. Mr Jago may have been sucking on the pebble, as was the habit of some runners; or he may have inhaled a pebble, during or after his fall into the lake, caused by the shock of his fall.

The ACT Cross Country Club decided to conduct its annual road race as a memorial to Noel Jago, to be held each winter, and run over 16 km. A newspaper article one year later anticipated that Noel’s father, Mr William Jago, would be in Canberra to present the trophy to the winner of the memorial race for 1975. More than 40 runners were expected to compete.