Manawatu bowls legend Barry Wynks dies
There’s a whisper at the Takaro Sports Club that the only time bowler Barry Wynks was disabled was when he reached for his pocket.
The three-time Commonwealth Games bowler and gun table tennis player, best known aswinkles orwynksey, died aged 68 yesterday, about 8.30am.
He is remembered as one of Manawatu¯’s greatest para athletes.
Despite being born with an impaired arm and leg, Wynks spent his life trying not to be disabled. For that reason, he never used a disabled car park.
Mark Noble was one of Wynks’ best mates, teaming up with him to represent New Zealand on the green over 20 years.
News of his death came as a shock yesterday.
‘‘It’s hard for me to start talking about [him]. I’ve been amess this morning.
‘‘We were more than good friends. We’ve been on plenty of trips together, won two silver medals together.’’
Takaro Sports Club president Gary Mitchell said Wynks joined the club as a skilled table tennis player in 1962.
When the club nominated him to play in the A grade, the Manawatu¯ association deemed him too disabled to play in such a prestigious grade.
He took up bowls in 1998-99, when he was 45.
During a game in those early years, the bottom half of Wynks’ artificial wooden leg snapped as he bowled.
Wynks asked if could fetch a spare leg from his car, only for his opponent to insist play be continuous. Wynks went on to beat him, hopping about on one leg.
‘‘It was because he was disabled that he was more determined than anyone else,’’ Mitchell said.
‘‘He’d follow any sport and loved his beer – a bottle of Heiny glued to his arm– but he was a sensible guy and you never saw him drunk.’’
Wynks was the ultimate clubman and organised several fundraising events such as quiz nights. ‘‘He was always willing to help.’’
Marcus Watson, in charge of table tennis at the club, said Wynks was the ‘‘heart and soul’’ of the Takaro Table Tennis Club.
He was club captain for more than 40 years, ‘‘which is essence meant that he literally ran the club for this length of time – true dedication to a sport that has been a huge part of Barry’s life’’.
Wynks played when the sport thrived in Manawatu¯.
‘‘Barry regularly was the top player in the Manawatu¯ and had plenty of battles playing against the other top players, who of course
were great friends as well over many years of competition.
‘‘Barry won the Takaro table tennis men’s A grade cup for something like 20-plus years in a row and it was only in more recent times when Barry stopped playing that let some of the rest of us get our names on the trophy.’’
Watson said club members were stunned and saddened by Wynk’s death.
At 12, he played water polo for Manawatu¯ with one arm, alongside Peter Shaw, a future international bowler.
At golf, about 1997, he shot 83 at the Palmerston North Golf Club, dropping putts and chips with one arm using Bob Charles left-handed clubs.
He even briefly tried rugby and cricket.
One year, he won the Manawatu¯ under-16 boys’ table tennis singles and a woman named Linda won her title in the same hall.
Years later, they met again, married and had two daughters.
Wynks was a life member of Takaro Table Tennis and of Manawatu¯. He was also awarded the Queen’s Service Medal at Government House in wellington for services to the sport.