David Francis Gerrard Awarded Swimming New Zealand Life Membership

Otago’s David Francis Gerrard has been awarded Life Membership of Swimming New Zealand at the 2016 Swimming New Zealand Awards held at the ASB Showgrounds in Auckland on Saturday 2 April.

Over many years, David has had a unique and extraordinary involvement in the sport, beginning with a swimming career that spanned a successful 14 years.

During this time he held the national title for the 200m butterfly for 10 consecutive years from 1960 to 1969 and the 100m butterfly national title six times between 1961 and 1968. On the international stage he competed at two Commonwealth Games, in 1962 and 1966, and at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

In Tokyo he set a New Zealand record in his heat of the 200m butterfly and finished 12^th overall. At the 1966 Kingston Commonwealth Games he won gold in the 200m butterfly and bronze in the 4x100m medley relay.

These achievements, along with many more, earned him the New Zealand Swimmer of the Year Award in 1964 and 1966.

Following retirement from competitive swimming he went on to gain a medical degree at the University of Otago, specialising in sports medicine.

The degree, coupled with his passion for swimming, led to a number of different roles from 1974 to 1996 as a New Zealand team official including as the New Zealand Team Doctor at several Commonwealth and Olympic Games and Chef de Mission of the 1996 Olympic Games. In one role or another, his service extends to attendance at nine Olympic Games.

Gerrard also served as a member of the Medical Commission for the Aquatic events at the 1990 Commonwealth Games and the summer Olympic Games from 2000 to 2012.

His involvement with swimming’s international body FINA as a member of the FINA Sports Medicine Committee, spans 29 years and is ongoing. It includes two years as Chairman, from 2000 to 2002, and Vice- Chairman from 2002 until present. FINA recognised Gerrard’s contribution by awarding him a FINA silver pin in 1990 and a gold pin in 2000 for outstanding contribution to the sport.

While not directly related to swimming Gerrard has also held various roles with the New Zealand Drug Agency, now Drug Free Sport NZ, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the World Rugby Anti-Doping Advisory Committee. Through these roles he has been able to provide valuable assistance to our swimmers and Swimming New Zealand seeking advice on anti-doping matters when required.

Gerrard’s ongoing research in the sports medicine field continues to offer real benefit not only to swimming and swimmers in New Zealand but also to the overall FINA family.

The complete list of Swimming New Zealand Life Members can be found here.

Caption: David Francis Gerrard (Left) is receives his Swimming New Zealand Life Membership from Chair of the Swimming New Zealand Awards Committee John Mace (Right). Image is for editorial use only. Credit: Simon Watts, BW Media. Awards Dinner