Ronald Vanneck Powell (6 May 1884 – 12 February 1930) was an English

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 di ...

who twice won

Silver Goblets The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless pairs at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing club A rowing club ...

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

. Powell was born at

Hornsey Hornsey is a district of north London, England in the London Borough of Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner Lo ...

, the son of Rev. Robert Walter Powell, and his wife Mary Caroline Hankey. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, where he was a member of the

Pitt Club The University Pitt Club, popularly referred to as the Pitt Club, the UPC, or merely as Club, is a private members' club of the University of Cambridge, with a previously male-only membership but now open to both men and women. History The ...

. He rowed for

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

in 1904, 1905 and 1906. Cambridge won in 1904, but lost in 1905. In the winning crew of 1906, he was No.6 and his younger brother

Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

was No. 7 behind him. In 1906 he partnered

Banner Johnstone Banner Carruthers Johnstone (11 November 1882 – 20 June 1964) was a British oarsman who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics. Johnstone was born in Bebington, then lived in Cheshire and was educated at Eton, where he was captain of the boa ...

to win the

, beating the Belgians Molmanns and Visser in the final by 3 lengths. Powell and Johnstone won Silver Goblets again in 1907 this time beating

Julius Beresford Julius Beresford (Wiszniewski) (18 July 1868 – 29 September 1959), also known as Berry or The Old Berry, was a British rower and coach. Beresford competed at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. Life Beresford was the son of Julius B ...

and

Karl Vernon Karl Vernon MM (19 June 1880 – 11 July 1973), sometimes known by his nickname The Bean, was a British rower and coach who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. Life Vernon was born in Neuenahr, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. He joined Thames R ...

easily in the final. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Powell was a lieutenant in the

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

and was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

in 1916. After the war, Powell emigrated to AustraliaThe Argus, Melbourne, Victoria ''Golf Championships'' Friday 5 September 1919
/ref> and lived at Escrick,

Undera Undera is a town in the Goulburn Valley region of northern Victoria, Australia. The town in the City of Greater Shepparton local government area, north of the state capital, Melbourne and north-west of the regional centre of Shepparton. At th ...

, Victoria. He died there of pneumonia at the age of 45.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Ronald 1884 births 1930 deaths English male rowers People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Cambridge University Boat Club rowers Scots Guards officers British Army personnel of World War I

See also

References