William Henry Mark Paterson (24 September 1947 – 5 August 2022) was a New Zealand sailor. He finished fifth in the 470 event at the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

, and won the

Cherub A cherub (; plural cherubim; he, כְּרוּב ''kərūḇ'', pl. ''kərūḇīm'', likely borrowed from a derived form of akk, 𒅗𒊏𒁍 ''karabu'' "to bless" such as ''karibu'', "one who blesses", a name for the lamassu) is one of the u ...

World Championship in 1978.

Biography

Paterson was born in Auckland on 24 September 1947, and began sailing at the Kohimarama Yacht Club when he was 10 years old. He came to national attention aged 13, when he won the Tanner Cup as the national youth P-class champion, raced at Gisborne. He went on to retain the Tanner Cup in 1962 and 1963. He also won the Tauranga Cup as national P-Class champion in both 1961 and 1963, and finished second in 1962. In 1968, Paterson won the Interdominion OK dinghy championship in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

. He was a member of the New Zealand team at the 1970 World OK Dinghy Championship, raced off Takapuna. Paterson skippered yachts in four

470 World Championships The 470 World Championships have been held every year since 1970 and organised by the International 470 Class Association and recognized by the International Sailing Federation. When the Championship forms part of the ISAF Sailing World Championship ...

. In 1974 and 1975, he sailed with

Brett Bennett Brett Bennett (born 10 February 1947) is a New Zealand sailor. He competed in the 470 event at the 1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into fo ...

, finishing 51st and 35th, respectively. At the 1977 and 1979 470 World Championships, Paterson was joined by crewman David Mackay, and they placed third in 1977 and 31st in 1979. Paterson and Bennett represented New Zealand in the

470 class The 470 (Four-Seventy) is a double-handed monohull planing dinghy with a centreboard, Bermuda rig, and centre sheeting. Equipped with a spinnaker, trapeze and a large sail-area-to-weight ratio, it is designed to plane easily, and good teamwork is ...

at the

. They were leading the competition before the final race of the regatta, but placed fifth overall after finishing 16th in the deciding race. At the 1974

World Championship in Torquay, England, Paterson and Bennett finished third. In 1978, Paterson and David Mackay won the Cherub World Championship, raced off

Milford Milford may refer to: Place names Canada * Milford (Annapolis), Nova Scotia * Milford (Halifax), Nova Scotia * Milford, Ontario England * Milford, Derbyshire * Milford, Devon, a place in Devon * Milford on Sea, Hampshire * Milford, Shro ...

on Auckland's North Shore. In 1979, Paterson and Mackay won the 470 class at the rehearsal event for the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

in Tallinn. However, the pair were unable to compete in the Olympic regatta the following year because of the

1980 Summer Olympics boycott The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and its allies later ...

. Paterson worked as a pharmacist, and bought a pharmacy in the Auckland suburb of Meadowbank in 1988. He died on 5 August 2022 at the age of 74.

References

External links

Photo of Paterson, aged 13, at the 1961 New Zealand P-Class Championship in Gisborne
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Paterson, Mark 1947 births 2022 deaths New Zealand male sailors (sport) Olympic sailors for New Zealand Sailors at the 1976 Summer Olympics – 470 Sportspeople from Auckland