{{short description|South African tennis player}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2023}} {{Use South African English|date=August 2012}} {{Infobox tennis biography | name = Harold Kitson |fullname = Harold Austin Kitson | image = Harold Kitson.jpg | caption = Kitson in 1912 | country = South Africa | residence = | birth_date = {{birth date|1874|6|17|df=yes}} | birth_place = Richmond, Colony of Natal{{cn|date=December 2020}} | death_date = {{death date and age|1951|11|30|1874|6|17|df=yes}} | death_place = Umkomaas, South Africa | height = | weight = | turnedpro = 1903 (amateur tour) | retired = 1914 | plays = Right-handed (one-handed backhand) | careerprizemoney = | singlesrecord = | singlestitles = | highestsinglesranking = | AustralianOpenresult = | FrenchOpenresult = | Wimbledonresult = 2R (1905, 1908) | USOpenresult = | Othertournaments = yes | WHCCresult = 2R (1912) | doublesrecord = | doublestitles = | highestdoublesranking = | AustralianOpenDoublesresult = | FrenchOpenDoublesresult = | WimbledonDoublesresult = QF (1905) | USOpenDoublesresult = | OthertournamentsDoubles = yes | AustralianOpenMixedresult = | FrenchOpenMixedresult = | WimbledonMixedresult = | USOpenMixedresult = | awards = | medaltemplates-expand = yes | medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry | {{RSA|1912}} }} {{MedalCompetition|Olympic Games – Tennis}} {{MedalGold | 1912 Stockholm | Doubles}} {{MedalSilver| 1912 Stockholm | Singles}} }}

'''Harry Austin Kitson''' (17 June 1874 &ndash; 30 November 1951) was a male tennis player from South Africa who won a gold medal at the men's doubles event at the 1912 Summer Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/2521 |title=Harold Kitson |publisher=Olympedia |access-date=12 April 2021}}</ref>

==Tennis career== Kitson competed in the singles and doubles events at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. In the singles event, he had a bye in the first round and lost in straight sets to George Caridia in the second round. In the doubles, he was partnered by Victor Gauntlett and reached the quarterfinals, where Clement Cazalet and Charles P. Dixon proved too strong.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Fourth Olympiad – The Official Report (of) The Olympic Games of 1908|year=1909|publisher=The British Olympic Association|location=London|pages=218–220|url=http://library.la84.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1908/1908.pdf|author=Theodore Andrea Cook}}</ref> Kitson was more successful at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm winning two medals. He won the gold medal in the men's doubles event together with Charles Lindhurst Winslow, defeating the Austrian team Arthur Zborzil / Fritz Pipes in the final. He won a silver medal in the men's singles tournament after losing in the final to his doubles partner in four sets.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Fifth Olympiad – The Official Report (of) The Olympic Games of 1912|year=1913|publisher=The Swedish Olympic Committee|location=London|pages=[https://archive.org/details/fiftholympiadoff00berg/page/628 628]–639|url=https://archive.org/details/fiftholympiadoff00berg|author=Erik Bergvall}}</ref><ref name="sports-reference">{{cite web |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ki/harry-kitson-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417203835/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ki/harry-kitson-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-04-17 |title=Harold Kitson Olympic Results |access-date=2013-05-13 |publisher=Sports Reference}}</ref>

Kitson won the South African Championships in 1905, 1908, 1911 and 1913 and was runner–up in 1909 and 1910 respectively to Reginald Doherty and Anthony Wilding.

==World Championships finals==

===Doubles (1 runner-up)===

{|class="sortable wikitable" |- !Result !Year !style="width:200px"|Championship !Surface !style="width:130px"|Partner !style="width:130px"|Opponents !style="width:120px" class="unsortable"|Score |- | style="background:#ffa07a;"|Loss || 1912 || style="background:#ebc2af;"|World Hard Court Championships || Clay || {{flagicon|SAF|1912}} Charles Winslow || {{flagicon|GER|1866}} Otto Froitzheim <br /> {{flagicon|GER|1866}} Oscar Kreuzer || 6–4, 2–6, 1–6, 3–6 |}

==Olympic finals==

===Singles (1 silver medal)=== {|class="sortable wikitable" !Result !Year !style="width:200px"|Location !Surface !style="width:130px"|Opponent !style="width:130px" class="unsortable"|Score |- | bgcolor="Silver" |Silver ||1912 || Summer Olympics, Stockholm || Clay|| {{flagicon|SAF|1912}} Charles Winslow || 5–7, 6–4, 8–10, 6–8 |}

===Doubles (1 gold medal)=== {|class="sortable wikitable" !Result !Year !style="width:200px"|Location !Surface !style="width:130px"|Partner !style="width:130px"|Opponents !style="width:120px" class="unsortable"|Score |- | bgcolor="gold"|Gold ||1912 || Summer Olympics, Stockholm || Clay || {{flagicon|SAF|1912}} Charles Winslow ||{{flagicon|Austrian Empire}} Felix Pipes<br />{{flagicon|Austrian Empire}} Arthur Zborzil|| 4–6, 6–1, 6–2, 6–2 |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons category}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070827191454/http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=KITSOHAR01 Olympics profile] *{{sports links}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions Tennis Men's Doubles}}

{{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Kitson, Harold}} Category:1874 births Category:1951 deaths Category:South African male tennis players Category:English emigrants to South Africa Category:Olympic tennis players for South Africa Category:Tennis players at the 1908 Summer Olympics Category:Tennis players at the 1912 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic gold medalists for South Africa Category:Olympic silver medalists for South Africa Category:Olympic medalists in tennis Category:Medalists at the 1912 Summer Olympics Category:People from the Umgungundlovu District Municipality Category:White South African people