David Wreyford Burnford (6 January 1915 – 10 June 1984) was a British medical doctor and rower who competed at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

Life

Burnford was educated at

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

. In 1935 he partnered Thomas Cree to win

Silver Goblets The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless pairs at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing club A rowing club ...

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

. In 1936 he was a member of the winning

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

boat in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

. Later in the year he partnered Cree in the

coxless pair A coxless pair is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars. The crew consists of a pair of rowers, each having one oar, one on the stroke side (rower's right h ...

representing

Great Britain at the 1936 Summer Olympics Great Britain, represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), competed at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. 208 competitors, 171 men and 37 women, took part in 91 events in 17 sports. British athletes have competed in every Su ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, but was unplaced. Burnford became a medical doctor and in 1944 was serving as a surgeon lieutenant commander in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

.British Medical Journal 25 November 1944
/ref> His wife was the novelist Sheila Burnford. He remarried after her death to Sharon Roark.Notice of David Burnford's death
/ref>

References

1915 births 1984 deaths Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge British male rowers Olympic rowers for Great Britain Rowers at the 1936 Summer Olympics Royal Navy officers of World War II {{UK-rowing-bio-stub

Life

See also

References