The 1982 New Zealand eight was a double world champion team of

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

s. The team won some significant awards for its successes.

Background

In the

1981 World Rowing Championships The 1981 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 30 August to 6 September 1981 at Oberschleißheim outside Munich, West Germany. Medal summary Men's events Women's events Medal table References ...

Oberschleißheim Oberschleißheim () is a municipality in the district of Munich, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located 13 km north of Munich (centre). As of 2005 it had a population of 11,467. Oberschleißheim is best known for the Schleissheim Palace and ...

outside

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

, Germany, the New Zealand eight came seventh. The crew changed significantly prior to the 1982 World Rowing Championships at

Rotsee __NOTOC__ The Rotsee (previously known as Rootsee) is a natural rowing lake on the northern edge of Lucerne, Switzerland. It is regarded as one of the best rowing venues in the world. Description and location The lake and its surrounding area is ...

in Lucerne, Switzerland, with four of the rowers and the

coxswain The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...

replaced.

World championships

The team that rowed at the 1982 World Rowing Championships was made up as follows: *

Les O'Connell Leslie James O'Connell (born 23 May 1958) is a New Zealand former representative rower. He was a two-time world champion and an Olympic champion who won his Olympic gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in the men's coxless four ...

(bow) * Mike Stanley (seat 2) *

Andrew Stevenson Andrew Stevenson (January 21, 1784 – January 25, 1857) was an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. He represented Richmond, Virginia in the Virginia House of Delegates and eventually became its speaker before being elected to the United S ...

(seat 3) *

George Keys George Keys (born 12 December 1959) is a former New Zealand rower who won an Olympic Bronze medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. Keys was born in 1959 in the Christchurch suburb of Burwood. He was a member of the Avon Rowing Club. At t ...

(seat 4) *

Roger White-Parsons Roger White-Parsons (born 16 November 1960) is a former New Zealand rower. At the 1982 World Rowing Championships at Rotsee, Switzerland, he won a gold medal with the New Zealand eight in seat five. At the 1983 World Rowing Championships ...

(seat 5) * Chris White (seat 6) *

Tony Brook Anthony Brook is a former New Zealand rower. At the 1982 World Rowing Championships at Rotsee __NOTOC__ The Rotsee (previously known as Rootsee) is a natural rowing lake on the northern edge of Lucerne, Switzerland. It is regarded as o ...

(seat 7) *

Dave Rodger David Marsden Rodger (born 18 June 1955) is a former New Zealand rower who won an Olympic bronze medal. Rodger was born in Hamilton, New Zealand. Rodger was first selected to represent New Zealand in New Zealand Rowing's first Junior eight cre ...

(stroke) * Andy Hay (cox) The New Zealand team beat East Germany and the Soviet Union to second and third place, respectively. The team was coached by

Harry Mahon Harold Thomas Mahon (15 January 1942 – 19 May 2001) was a New Zealand rowing coach. He coached international crews from New Zealand, Switzerland, South Africa and Great Britain to success at World Championships and Olympic Games. He also coach ...

. Two of the team members were substituted for the

1983 World Rowing Championships The 1983 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 3 to 4 September 1983 at Wedau in Duisburg, West Germany. Medal summary Men's events Women's events Medals table Seventeen nations won medals of t ...

at Wedau in

Duisburg Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in No ...

, Germany, with Brook and O'Connell replaced by

Barrie Mabbott James Barrie Mabbott (born 19 November 1960) is a former New Zealand rower who won an Olympic bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Biography Mabbott was born in 1960 in Carterton. He began rowing at Westlake Boys High S ...

and

Nigel Atherfold Nigel William Atherfold (born 13 June 1963) is a former New Zealand rower. At the 1983 World Rowing Championships at Wedau in Duisburg, Germany, he won a gold medal with the New Zealand eight as the bowman. At the 1986 World Rowing Championsh ...

. The New Zealand eight defended its world title, with East Germany coming second, and Australia in third place. Many of the team went on to compete at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

, where there was a great expectation for them to win gold. The team came fourth in the Olympics, and their preparations for, and then competition at, the Olympics was turned into a documentary.

Awards

At the 1982

Halberg Awards The Halberg Awards are a set of awards, given annually since 1949, recognising New Zealand's top sporting achievements. They are named for New Zealand former middle-distance runner and Olympic gold medalist Sir Murray Halberg. The initial award ...

, the New Zealand eight was crowned "Sportsman of the Year". The 1982 team was inducted into the

New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame The New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame is an organisation commemorating New Zealand's greatest sporting triumphs. It was inaugurated as part of the New Zealand sesquicentenary celebrations in 1990. Some 160 members have been inducted into the Hall o ...

in 1995.

References

{{s-end Rowing crews Rowing in New Zealand 1982 in rowing 1982 in New Zealand sport 1983 in rowing 1983 in New Zealand sport

Background

World championships

Awards

See also

References