Sir Donald David Rowlands (17 June 1926 – 18 March 2015) was a New Zealand

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is di ...

and businessman.

Early life and family

Rowlands was born in 1926, the third child of Ruby Winifred (née Harrison) and Horace Edward Rowlands, and was raised in the small town of

Ōwhango Ōwhango is a small town in New Zealand situated about south of Taumarunui on State Highway 4 (SH4), and about west of the Whakapapa River, a tributary of the nascent Whanganui River. Ōwhango has been the official name since 16 July 2020. I ...

where his father was a sawmill manager. When aged five, Rowlands contracted rheumatic fever and had congested lungs, and missed a year's school as a result.

Rowing

Rowlands rowed for the

West End Rowing Club West End Rowing Club is based at Saunders Reserve on Rosebank Peninsula, in Avondale, Auckland, New Zealand. It has won numerous national, British Empire Games, Commonwealth, World and Olympic titles, with four club members winning five Olympic g ...

in Auckland, and won nine New Zealand national rowing titles in the single sculls, double sculls and eights between 1948 and 1957. At the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

he won the silver medal as part of the men's eight alongside crew members

Donald Adam Donald Adam is a former New Zealand rower. At the 1950 British Empire Games he won the silver medal as part of the men's eight alongside crew members Kerry Ashby, Murray Ashby, Bruce Culpan, Thomas Engel, Grahame Jarratt, Don Rowlands, ...

Kerry Ashby Kerry Ayling Ashby (4 September 1928 – 3 March 2015) was a New Zealand rower. Early life and family Ashby was born in Devonport on Auckland's North Shore in 1928, the son of Catherine Adele (née Gozar) and Edward Ashby, and the older broth ...

Murray Ashby Murray Ashby (12 May 1931 – 18 November 1990) was a New Zealand rower. Ashby was born in 1931, the son of Edward (known as Ted Ashby) and Catherine Adele (née Gozar) Ashby, and the younger brother of Kerry Ashby. He was educated at Mount Al ...

Bruce Culpan Bruce Ewen Culpan (16 June 1930 – 24 August 2021) was a New Zealand rower who won silver medals representing his country at the 1950 British Empire Games and 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. He worked as a pharmacist for nearly six ...

Thomas Engel Thomas Carl Engel (19 November 1927 – 6 December 1979) was a New Zealand rower who won a silver medal at the 1950 British Empire Games. Biography Born in the Auckland suburb of Grey Lynn on 19 November 1927, Engel was the son of Ernest Car ...

Grahame Jarratt Grahame Laughlan Jarratt (10 January 1929 – 5 August 2011) was a New Zealand rower. At the 1950 British Empire Games he won the silver medal as part of the men's eight alongside crew members Donald Adam, Kerry Ashby, Murray Ashby, Bruce Cul ...

, Edwin Smith and

Bill Tinnock William James Tinnock (5 April 1930 – 3 April 2017) was a New Zealand rower. William (known as Bill) Tinnock was born on 5 April 1930 in Auckland, New Zealand. At the 1950 British Empire Games he won the silver medal as part of the men's eig ...

. At the next

British Empire and Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

in Vancouver, he won the gold medal in the men's single sculls. He was included in the New Zealand team for the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, wh ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

but did not compete. Rowlands served as a New Zealand rowing selector between 1960 and 1977, and managed the national rowing squads at the

1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Australia, from 22 November to 1 December 1962. Athletic events were held at Perry Lakes Stadium in the suburb of Floreat and swimming events at Beatty Park in North Perth. The ...

in Perth and at the

1997 World Rowing Championships The 1997 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 31 August to 7 September 1997 at Lac d'Aiguebelette, France. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation), ...

. He was chairman of the organising committee for the

1978 World Rowing Championships Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 � ...

Lake Karapiro Lake Karapiro () is an artificial reservoir lake on the Waikato River at Karapiro, south-east of Cambridge in New Zealand's North Island. The lake was formed in 1947 by the damming of the Waikato River to store water for the 96-megawatt Karap ...

and patron of the

2010 World Rowing Championships The 2010 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 31 October to 7 November 2010 on Lake Karapiro near Cambridge, New Zealand. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organised by FISA (the International Ro ...

at the same venue. Between 1974 and 1992, Rowlands was the New Zealand and Australian representative on the

International Rowing Federation World Rowing, also known as the World Rowing Federation (former abbreviation FISA; french: Fédération internationale des sociétés d'aviron), is the international governing body for rowing. Its current president is Jean-Christophe Rolland w ...

. He was the vice-patron and a life member of

Rowing New Zealand Rowing New Zealand is the sports governing body for rowing in New Zealand. Its purpose is to provide leadership and support to enable an environment of success for the New Zealand rowing community. This includes secondary schools, clubs, maste ...

Business career

Rowlands began working for

Fisher & Paykel Fisher & Paykel Appliances Holdings Ltd () is a major appliance manufacturer which is a subsidiary of Chinese multinational home appliance manufacturer Haier. It is a multinational corporation based in East Tāmaki, New Zealand. Originally a ...

as an assistant production engineer in 1948. He rose to become a director and chief executive of the company from 1978 to 2001. He also served as the chairman of

Mainfreight Mainfreight Limited is a New Zealand logistics and transport company headquartered in Auckland. Mainfreight commenced operations in Auckland in 1978 and is one of the largest freight companies in New Zealand. It has been listed on the New Zeala ...

from 1983, and became a director of HamiltonJet in 1990.

Honours and awards

In the

1973 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1973 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1973 to celebr ...

, Rowlands was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

, for services to rowing, and he was promoted to Commander of the same order in the

1979 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1979 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate ...

. In the

2015 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2015 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, Rowlands was appointed a

Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of New Zealand, Queen of New Zealand, "for those ...

for services to business and rowing. In the

2015 Australia Day Honours The 2015 Australia Day Honours were announced on 26 January 2015 by the Governor General of Australia, Sir Peter Cosgrove. The Australia Day Honours are the first of the two major annual honours lists, announced on Australia Day (26 January), with ...

he was appointed an honorary

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian ...

for significant service to the sport of rowing. Rowlands was named as a member of the New Zealand Olympic Order in 1991. He won the leadership award at the 2005

Halberg Awards The Halberg Awards are a set of awards, given annually since 1949, recognising New Zealand's top sporting achievements. They are named for New Zealand former middle-distance runner and Olympic gold medalist Sir Murray Halberg. The initial award w ...

. He was inducted into the

New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame The New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame is an organisation commemorating New Zealand's greatest sporting triumphs. It was inaugurated as part of the New Zealand sesquicentenary celebrations in 1990. Some 160 members have been inducted into the Hall ...

. In August 2014, he was inducted into the

New Zealand Business Hall of Fame The New Zealand Business Hall of Fame is a figurative hall of fame dedicated to New Zealanders who have made a significant contribution to the economic and social development of New Zealand. The hall was established in 1994 by the Young Enterpr ...

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Rowlands, Donald 1926 births 2015 deaths New Zealand male rowers Rowers at the 1950 British Empire Games Rowers at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Rowers at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Rowers at the 1956 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games silver medallists for New Zealand Commonwealth Games gold medallists for New Zealand Olympic rowers of New Zealand New Zealand Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Honorary Members of the Order of Australia New Zealand businesspeople New Zealand chief executives Commonwealth Games medallists in rowing Businesspeople awarded knighthoods Sportspeople from Waikato People in sports awarded knighthoods Medallists at the 1950 British Empire Games Medallists at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games