Gary David Robertson (born 12 April 1950 in

Oamaru Oamaru (; mi, Te Oha-a-Maru) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific coast; State Highway 1 and the railway ...

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

) is a former New Zealand

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 ...

who won an Olympic gold medal at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. He teamed with Dick Joyce, Wybo Veldman, John Hunter, Lindsay Wilson,

Joe Earl Athol John "Joe" Earl (born 1 October 1952) is a former New Zealand rower who won two Olympic medals. Earl was born in 1952 in Christchurch and grew up on a farm in Hawarden in North Canterbury. He received his education at St. Andrew's Colle ...

Trevor Coker Trevor Ian Coker (1 October 1949 – 23 August 1981) was a New Zealand rower who won two Olympic medals. He was born in Whanganui, New Zealand. Coker won the European Championship in 1971. Known then as the "New Zealand Eight", Coker and his tea ...

and

Tony Hurt Anthony John Hurt (born 30 March 1946) is a former New Zealand rower who won two Olympic medals. At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, he teamed with Dick Joyce, Wybo Veldman, John Hunter, Lindsay Wilson, Joe Earl, Trevor Coker and Gary R ...

and

Simon Dickie Simon Charles Dickie (31 March 1951 – 13 December 2017) was a New Zealand rowing cox who won three Olympic medals. Dickie was born in 1951 in Waverley in Taranaki, New Zealand. He was educated at Wanganui Collegiate School where he was part ...

(cox) to win the gold medal in the coxed eight. Robertson is one of only two New Zealand Olympic gold medallists who never won a national premier title. Robertson is the nephew of famed New Zealand rowing coach

Rusty Robertson Russell Robertson (1927 – 17 February 1990), known as Rusty Robertson, was a New Zealand-born, world class rowing coach of New Zealand and later, Australian national representative rowing crews. He was the national rowing coach of New Zealand ...

. His daughter, who is also a rower, married Olympic champion rower Eric Murray. The Robertsons lived in Australia for a while but returned to live in

Cambridge, New Zealand Cambridge (Māori: ''Kemureti'') is a town in the Waipa District of the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. Situated southeast of Hamilton, on the banks of the Waikato River, Cambridge is known as "The Town of Trees & Champions" ...

when their daughter was pregnant. Gary Robertson later worked as a full-time rowing coach in Christchurch. He now coaches at Waikato Diocesan School for Girls, previously

Sydney Rowing Club Sydney Rowing Club is the oldest rowing club in New South Wales, Australia formed in 1870. It has occupied its current site on Port Jackson's Parramatta River at Abbotsford Point since 1874. The club has a focus on its high performance and elite ...

References

External links

* 1950 births Living people New Zealand male rowers Olympic gold medalists for New Zealand in rowing Rowers at the 1972 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Oamaru Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics World Rowing Championships medalists for New Zealand European Rowing Championships medalists {{NewZealand-rowing-bio-stub