Bryan Russell Purser (born ) is a New Zealand

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

player. He competed at two Commonwealth Games, in 1974 and 1978, and won the bronze medal in the men's doubles with his brother,

Richard Purser Richard Howard Purser (born 28 February 1942) is a New Zealand badminton player who has won 33 New Zealand national badminton titles, including the men's singles on nine occasions. He competed at four consecutive Commonwealth Games, from 1966 t ...

, at the

1978 Commonwealth Games The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta from 3 to 12 August 1978, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics were held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with apar ...

Early life and family

Born in about 1950, Purser is the son of Betty Purser (née Cochran) and Howard Musgrave Purser, and the brother of

. He was educated at

New Plymouth Boys' High School New Plymouth Boys' High School is a single-sex boys' state secondary school in New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. The school currently caters for approximately 1300 students, including 210 boarders, on its site. The school often collaborate ...

, where he was a house prefect and active in sports. He was vice-captain of the cricket 1st XI in 1968, and was prominent as a badminton and tennis player. Purser's son,

Mark Purser Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

, is a golfer who represented New Zealand in the Eisenhower Trophy before turning professional. His nephew, Craig Cooper, has represented New Zealand in badminton.

Badminton

Purser won national junior badminton titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles in 1967. Purser represented New Zealand at two Commonwealth Games, in 1974 and 1978. At the

1974 British Commonwealth Games The 1974 British Commonwealth Games ( mi, 1974 Taumāhekeheke Commonwealth) were held in Christchurch, New Zealand from 24 January to 2 February 1974. The bid vote was held in Edinburgh at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games. The Games were off ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, Purser was eliminated in the round of 16 in each of the men's singles, men's doubles (partnering his brother Richard), and mixed doubles (with Robin Denton). At the

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Purser was eliminated in the second round of the men's singles, reached the round of 16 in the mixed doubles with Allison Sinton, and won the bronze medal with his brother Richard in the men's doubles. In the mixed teams event, Purser was a part of the New Zealand team that finished fourth, losing to Malaysia in the play-off for the bronze medal.

Later life

After playing badminton in Europe for several seasons, Purser returned to New Zealand, and with his sister and brother-in-law, Judy and Ray Cooper, bought the franchise for Cowell's Genuine Pavlovas in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, in 1981. They grew the business, from initially baking 224 pavlovas a day, to a similar number per hour in 2001.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Purser, Bryan 1950s births Living people Year of birth uncertain People educated at New Plymouth Boys' High School Badminton players at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games Badminton players at the 1978 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for New Zealand New Zealand male badminton players Commonwealth Games medallists in badminton New Zealand businesspeople Medallists at the 1978 Commonwealth Games Sportspeople from New Plymouth