NZ rowers presented with legacy medals

Those honoured included New Zealand’s oldest Olympian Reginald Douglas

New Zealand’s oldest Olympian, Reginald Douglas, who has lived in Whanganui for 30 years, was one of many New Zealand representative rowers at either the Olympic Games, Commonwealth or Empire Games or Senior World Championships to receive legacy medals at a special ceremony in Whanganui on Friday.

Douglas won gold at the 1954 British Empire Games in the coxless pairs and was second in the double sculls. In 1956 at the Melbourne Olympics, he was fifth in the men’s pairs. In 1958 in the Empire Games at Cardiff, he won gold in the men’s pairs. He rowed for the Mercer Rowing Club.

The event, held at the AramohoWhanganui Rowing Club, celebrated the life of Reginald Douglas, four other rowing athletes from the 1950s era and Max Brown and Chris Harris who both were at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and Philippa Baker-Hogan, triple gold medallist at World championships, double Olympic finalist and double Halberg Award winner.

“Billy Webb was our first world champion 115 years ago,” said Mayor Andrew Tripe at the event. “Trevor Coker won an Olympic medal in the 8s in 1972 when Clarrie Healey and Dick Tonks were both legendary coaches with Tonks being a 1972 gold medalist. Nikki Payne was the first New Zealand woman to win an Olympic medal.

“Philippa Baker-Hogan was New Zealand’s first female world champion. Kerri Williams (nee Gowler) was Whanganui’s first Olympic champion in Tokyo in 2020. This is nspiring young people to get out and about, no matter what sport it is,” said Tripe.

Max Brown, 28, was born and raised in Whanganui. He was in the K2 1000 team in 2019 that was eighth in the A final of the World Cup in Poland. He was in the K2 1000 sprint team in an impressive fifth place in his first Olympics at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but narrowly missed 2024 Olympic qualification in the K4 at the 2023 World Championship and now will attempt to qualify for the K2 500 metres at the Asia Pacific Games in 2024. He was awarded a glass trophy by Whanganui artist Katie Brown.

Chris Harris, 38, started rowing at Whanganui High School at the age of 17, for Aramoho Rowing Club. He represented New Zealand in 2007 in a men’s coxless fours at the Under 23 World championships. He has competed in fours, eights, quads and double sculls all at the World Championship level. He was placed fifth in the men’s coxed eights in 2010 at the World Rowing Championships at Lake Karapiro. He was the mainstay of New Zealand men’s double sculls

from 2015-2020, winning two bronze medals at the World Championship level and a gold in 2017 at Lake Sarasota, US.

The triple Olympian made the final for the coxless fours in 2012 and was 11th in the double scull at Rio de Janeiro in 2016, and eighth at Tokyo in 2020. He was awarded a glass trophy by Whanganui artist Katie Brown.

Peter Lucas, a former Clifton Rowing Club rower, was a 1956 Olympian in the men’s coxed fours, getting seventh place. Ray Laurent, a former Clifton Rowing Club member,

was a 1956 Olympian. Don Gemmel, a former Union Boat Club rower, was a 1956 Olympian in the men’s coxed fours. Graeme Moran, former Union Boat Club rower, was a former elite rower in the men’s coxed fours.

Philippa Baker-Hogan was first selected in 1986 for the Edinburgh Commonwealth Games, winning silver, then fourth at the World Championships in Nottingham.

She was fifth in the same event at Copenhagen in 1987 and fourth at Milan in 1988. In 1989 she won a silver medal in the Women’s Lightweight

Double Sculls at the World Championships in Yugoslavia. She was New Zealand rowing’s first female world champion, with gold in the Women’s Lightweight Single Sculls, in 1991 at Vienna, then gold in 1993 in the double sculls at Racice in the Czech Republic and again in Indianapolis, US, in 1994, followed by the bronze medal in Tampere, Finland in 1995.

Baker-Hogan was fourth at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in the women’s double sculls, and at the Olympics at Atlanta in 1996, she was sixth in the women’s double sculls.

Graeme Moran, who was represented by his family, was a 1956 Olympian rower from the Union Boat Club. Ivan Sutherland, the president of New Zealand Rowing, and Gerry Dwyer, the chairman of the New Zealand Rowing Foundation, presented his legacy medal.

A family member of Ray Laurent, 1956 Olympian and former Clifton Rowing Club member, receives his award from Ivan Sutherland, the president of New Zealand Rowing, and Gerry Dwyer, chairman of the New Zealand Rowing Foundation.

Mayor Andrew Tripe presents New Zealand’s oldest Olympian, Reginald Douglas, with his legacy medal, with Ivan Sutherland, the president of Rowing New Zealand (left) and the chairman of New Zealand Rowing Foundation, Gerry Dwyer (right).

The mother and son of Peter Lucas, a 1956 Melbourne Olympics rower in the coxed fours who was placed seventh, receive the legacy medal from Ivan Sutherland, the president New Zealand Rowing, and Gerry Dwyer, the chairman of the New Zealand Rowing Foundation.

Double Halberg Awards winner and Olympic rower Philippa Baker-Hogan won two gold medals, a silver and a bronze at the World Rowing Championships. She receives her legacy medal from Ivan Sutherland and Gerry Dwyer.

Donald Gemmel was a 1956 Olympian in the coxless fours, and a former Union Boat Club rower. His wife receives a legacy medal from Ivan Sutherland, the president of New Zealand Rowing, and Gerry Dwyer, the chairman of the New Zealand Rowing Foundation.

Triple Olympian Chris Harris, who was the mainstay of the New Zealand Men’s Double Sculls 2015-20, receives his legacy medal from Mayor Andrew Tripe.

Max Brown, an Olympic New Zealand kayak team member who was fifth in the 2022 Olympics at Tokyo, receives his legacy medal from Mayor Andrew Tripe.