Olympic Gold Medallist stands as YNZ President

by Richard Gladwell on 24 Aug 2005 Rex Sellers, winner of an Olympic Gold medal in 1984 and a silver medal in Pusan, Korea in 1988, has announced his intention to stand for President of Yachting New Zealand. He will contest the position being vacated by outgoing President, Geoff Thorpe. There is one other nominee for the role, Denis Mowbray a current Board member who has held the position for six years.

Selected for five Olympic Games in the Tornado class, Sellers (55) is one of the icons of New Zealand sailing. He moved across to Oracle Racing for the 2000-2003 America's Cup where he headed their weather team. He was also Team Manager and Coach of two Optimist teams in 1999 and 2000. Sellers has spent most of his life on the water having started sailing at the age of 11 years and becoming a commercial fisherman soon after leaving school in Nelson.

With a reputation as one of the hard men of New Zealand sailing, Seller's background is in stark contrast to Mowbray, a management consultant, and past Commodore of Canterbury Yacht and Motor Boat Club, who is currently undertaking a Masters degree in Corporate Governance and Strategic Management.

Mowbray is also a nominee for the Board of YNZ, along with Jim Murdoch, who is completing his first two year term as a Director of Yachting NZ. From Northland, Murdoch is best known for his involvement in Teams Racing, including organisation of the 2003 ISAF World Teams Racing Championships in Auckland. A former F1 motor racing mechanic, Murdoch also managed five New Zealand teams to ISAF World Team Racing championships, including NZ's only win in 2001. He was also heavily involved in the introduction of the 420 class to New Zealand, now one of the country's strongest two-handed classes.

Also contesting one of the two positions on the YNZ Board is Rob Bassett (47), current NZ Champion in the Etchells Class as well as being prominent in keelboat racing. Bassett has won several national dinghy championships and was one of the driving forces behind the Torbay Boating Club, now one of NZ's premier dinghy clubs - an effort for which he was made a Life Member of the club. A plumber by trade, Bassett now runs a substantial plumbing and drainage company on Auckland's North Shore.

Elections for the positions will be held at the YNZ Annual Meeting on 17th September.