Sir Arthur Espie Porritt, baron Porritt, 1. Baronet, GCMG, GCVO, CBE (* 10 August 1900 in Wanganui, "† 1 January 1994 in London) was a physician, a politician of New Zealand and an athlete. It won with the olympic summer games 1924 bronze medal in the 100-Meter-Lauf and was from 1967 to 1972 governor general of New Zealand.

Porritts nut/mother died 1914 and its father went soon thereafter to Europe, in order to fight in the First World War. Porritt began 1920 at the university of Otago a medicine study. it received a Rhodes scholarship to 1923 and continued its study from 1924 to 1926 at the Magdalen college of the University of Oxford.

The talented athlete represented New Zealand at the olympic summer games 1924 in Paris. There it won the bronze medal in the 100-Meter-Lauf. Over 200 meters it won two advances, separated however with a fifth place in the semi-final. The 100-Meter-Rennen was the key scene 1981 of the turned film "„the hour of the winner "“. Because of Porritts modesty was replaced to Tom Watson in the film of the winners the bronze medal by the fictitious character "„"“. Porritt traveled to the olympic summer games 1928 in Amsterdam, could not not participate however with the 100-Meter-Lauf because of an injury.

After its resignation from the Leichtathletik Porritt was team head of the crew of New Zealand with the British Empire Games 1934 in London and olympic summer games 1936 in Berlin. From 1934 to 1967 it was member of the international olympic committee. (IOC). Besides he was from 1961 to 1967 a first president of the medical commission of the IOC.

Starting from 1926 he worked as a surgeon on the St Mary's hospital in London and in the same year became he a family doctor of the duke of York, which was crowned later than Eduard VIII. to the British king. From 1952 to 1967 he was also a family doctor of queen Elizabeth II. he 1950 to the knight was struck and received to 1963 the title of a Baronet.

During the Second World War it was Brigadier in the Royal Army Medical Corps. It served the battle in France until around afterwards in Egypt; in addition it was involved in the D-Day in normandy. 1960 became Porritt president of the British Medical Association (British association of physicians) and the Royal college OF Surgeons (royal surgeon school). 1967 went Porritt to New Zealand, where he began the office of the governor general. He was the first governor general at all, who had been born in New Zealand. At the end of its term of office in the year 1972 it returned again to England.

At the New Year's Day 1994 it died in London at the age of 93 years. Its son Jonathon Porritt is a well-known environmental protection activist.

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