Bill Pratney
William "Bill" Pratney (actually Wiremu Paratane ; * 1909 ; † August 25, 2001 in Auckland ) was a New Zealand cyclist . He is considered the "greatest Maori cyclist".
Bill Pratney was born as Wiremu Paratane. His mother died in the year he was born, his grandmother a few years later, and he was sent to an orphanage. There he was renamed William Pratney. As a teenager, he won local cycling races and he decided to become a cyclist. In 1930 he was seriously injured in a car accident and was in a coma for three days, so that the doctors deemed it impossible that he could ever ride a bicycle again.
But only three months later Pratney was back on his bike and won the " Taranaki Round-the-Mountain" race in the best time . A high point of his career was winning the New Zealand Road Championship in 1937 before favorite Harry Watson , which was followed by other national titles.
Pratney remained active as a cyclist into old age and competed in championships in his respective age group. In 1995, at the age of 86, he drove a three-hundred-mile (330-kilometer) charity route in Australia in two days.
literature
- Jim Robinson: Bill Pratney. Never Say Die (= New Zealand Cycling Legends 3). Kennett Bros., Wellington 2007, ISBN 978-0-9582673-2-8 .
Web links
- New cycling book: Bill Pratney on mountainbike.co.nz
- Cycling legend Bill Pratney on kennet.co.nz
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Pratney, Bill |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Paratane, Wiremu (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | New Zealand cyclist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1909 |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 25, 2001 |
| Place of death | Auckland |