Sir David Whitlock Tanner

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(born 29 December 1947 in London) was the performance director for the British Rowing Team until February 2018. He has assisted the team to Olympic success from the 1984 Los Angeles games to the 2016 Rio games. This success has been paralleled by success in the World Rowing Championships.

Career

He was educated at

Abingdon School Abingdon School is an independent day and boarding school in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. It is the List of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, twentieth oldest Independent School (UK), independent British school. In May 202 ...

where he gained rowing colours for the Abingdon School Boat Club. Tanner's first career was as a teacher. He followed this at the same time involving himself deeply with rowing. He first achieved a place in the vanguard of British rowing when he coached a team of 4 inexperienced boys from Ealing Grammar School and took them through to medal success in the World Championships and to a bronze medal in the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially branded as Moscow 1980 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russ ...

in Moscow. Tanner was deputy headmaster at Greenford High School in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...

from 1986 to 1987 before he took a post as headmaster at the former Longford School in

Feltham Feltham () is a town in West London, England, from Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it became part of the London Borough of Hounslow in 1965. The parliamentary constituency of Feltham and Heston (UK Parliament constituency), Felt ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

from 1987 to 1996. In 1992 he was appointed team leader to GB rowing for the Olympic games of that year. Following the 1996 Olympic games Tanner was appointed, with the support of lottery funding, a full-time position of Performance Director to GB rowing. 2002 saw the introduction of Tanner’s initiative to find new rowers. Called “Start” it recruited half of the 10 Olympic champion rowers in the 2012 games. He announced on 15 December 2017 that he would be standing down from his post of Performance Director at the end of February 2018. He is a long-time governor of

Shiplake College Shiplake College is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding and day school in Shiplake, by the River Thames, just outside Henley-on-Thames, England. The school, with 540 pupils, takes girls and boys from 11–18. Originally boys ...

and became Chair of the Board in December 2020.

Awards

* – 1992 appointed a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

* – 2000 awarded the Dyson Award for coaching * – 2003 appointed an

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

* – 2009 appointed a CBE * – 2012 granted

Freedom of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

* – 2013 appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

for services to rowing * – 2013 granted Freedom of the Company of Watermen

References

1947 births Living people Alumni of the University of Bristol Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Bachelor Rowing coaches Rowers from London People educated at Abingdon School {{UK-rowing-bio-stub

Career

Awards

See also

References