Patrick Pym (6 September 1936 – 4 December 2019) was a British sailor. He competed in the Finn event at the 1972 Summer Olympics.[1][2]

Patrick Pym
Personal information
NationalityBritish
Born(1936-09-06)6 September 1936
Honiton, England
Died4 December 2019(2019-12-04) (aged 83)
Sport
SportSailing

Biography

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Pym was born in Honiton, Devon in September 1936.[1] In the 1950s, Pym began racing in 12 foot dinghy off the Devon coast,[3] going on to become the national champion in the class.[4]

Pym competed in the trials for the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.[1] Despite a strong performance, he only made the reserve team for the Olympics.[1]

He was a member of the Hamble River Sailing Club, with him being one of six club members selected for the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.[5] At the 1972 Summer Olympics, Pym competed in the Finn event, where he finished in 18th place.[6] In the seven races that made up the event, his best finish was a sixth place in race four,[7] while he was disqualified in race five.[8]

Following the 1968 Summer Olympics, Pym and David Hunt founded the company Needlespars.[1] The company worked on the design of masts, which became the standard in the sport.[1]

In 1975 Pym was Overall Winner of the ‘Round The Island Race’ in his quarter ton yacht ‘Needlework’.

In 1981 he Co-helmed Bryan Saffrey-Cooper’s ‘Dragon’ in the winning British Admiral’s Cup team (with ‘Victory’ and ‘Yeoman XXIII’).

In 1982 Pym helmed ‘Rakau’ (owned by Martin Lowson and Brian Ferris) which won RORC ‘Yacht of the Year’. In 1983 ‘Rakau’ was Fastnet Class Winner.

Pym died in December 2019 at the age of 83.[9][10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Patrick Pym". Olympedia. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  2. ^ "Patrick Pym Obituary". Hamble River Sailing Club. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  3. ^ "Hamble River racer Patrick Pym passes away". Fishing Boating World. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  4. ^ "Tributes paid to former city planning officer and sailor Patrick Pym". Hampshire Chronicle. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Hamble River racer Patrick Pym passes away". Yachts and Yachting. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  6. ^ "One Person Dinghy (Finn), Open". Olympedia. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  7. ^ "One Person Dinghy (Finn), Open – Race Four". Olympedia. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  8. ^ "One Person Dinghy (Finn), Open – Race Five". Olympedia. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Patrick Pym bows out". Boating Business. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Hamble River racer Patrick Pym passes away". NZ Boating World. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
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