Richard Burnell

Richard "Dickie" Desborough Burnell (born July 26, 1917 in Henley-on-Thames , Oxfordshire , † January 29, 1995 in Wallingford , Oxfordshire) was a British rower and Olympic champion in double sculls .

Richard Burnell was a member of the Leander Club . He received his education at Eton and then at Magdalen College , Oxford. In 1939 he took part in the Boat Race in the Oxford boat , the Cambridge boat won. Burnell did military service during World War II , but returned to rowing after the war ended. In 1946 he won the single race for the Wingfield Sculls. In 1948 Richard Burnell competed with Bertram Bushnell in a double scull at the Olympic Games , the regatta was held on the Thames in Henley-on-Thames. In the run-up, the two British were subject to the French boat, but they were able to qualify for the semi-finals via the hope run. In the semifinals, the British won in front of the boats from the United States and Belgium, while the French were defeated in the third semifinal against the crew from Uruguay. In the final, the British won four seconds ahead of the Danes, while the bronze went to the Uruguayans. Burnell took part in the British Empire Games in 1950 with the English eighth and won the bronze medal. In 1951 he won the double scull competition at the Henley Royal Regatta together with P. Bradley .

Richard Burnells father Charles Burnell was in 1908, on the same race course as his son in 1948, Olympic champion with eight , his father Arthur Garton won in 1912 also in the eighth. Richard Burnell's son took part in the Boat Race in 1962.

After his sporting career, Richard Burnell was a rowing journalist and one of the foremost historians of rowing.

Web links

• Richard Burnell in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )