Mervyn David Richards (16 November 1930 – 1 July 2018) was a New Zealand

pole vaulter Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping was already practiced by the ancie ...

, who represented his country at three British Empire and Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...

. He went on to become a successful coach in both pole vault and gymnastics.

Early life and family

Born in

Oamaru Oamaru (; ) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast; State Highway 1 (New Zealand), Sta ...

on 16 November 1930, Richards was the youngest child of David Llewellyn Richards and Hephzibah Richards (née Mears). After leaving Oamaru, the family lived briefly in

Waitati Waitati, from the Māori language, Māori Waitete, is a small seaside settlement in Otago, New Zealand, within the city limits of Dunedin. It is located close to the tidal mudflats of Blueskin Bay, 19 kilometres north of the Dunedin city centre. ...

, before moving to

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

where Richards was educated at

King Edward Technical College King Edward Technical College is a former technical college in Dunedin, New Zealand. The college was established in 1889 as the Dunedin Technical School when the Caledonian Society of Otago instigated Night school, night education classes. B ...

. When he was 16 years old, he began training as an optical technician, and worked in that occupation until he retired. In 1958, Richards married Margaret Winifred Garrod—who won the national women's javelin title in 1957 and 1958—at

Mosgiel Mosgiel () is an urban satellite of Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand, fifteen kilometres west of the city's centre. Since the re-organisation of New Zealand local government in 1989 it has been inside the Dunedin City Council area. Mosgiel has a p ...

Anglican church. The couple went on to have three children, including Deborah Hurst who won a bronze medal in gymnastics at the

1978 Commonwealth Games The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, from 3 to 12 August, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics was held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with a ...

Pole vault

Competitor

Richards won the New Zealand national pole vault title 11 years in succession, from 1952 to 1962. He also represented New Zealand in the pole vault at three consecutive British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1950 to 1958. At the 1950 Empire Games in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, he finished eighth with a height of . Four years later, at the

British Empire and Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, he cleared to finish in fifth place. Finally, at the 1958 games in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

, he won the bronze medal after a countback, with a vault of . Richards won the British

AAA Championships The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the offi ...

title at the

1958 AAA Championships The 1958 AAA Championships was the 1958 edition of the annual outdoor track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA). It was held from 11 to 12 July 1958 at White City Stadium in London, England. Summary The ...

Coach

Richards was a successful pole vault coach in Dunedin, training a number of national champions, including

1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Western 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 ...

representative Kevin Gibbons. He also provided technical advice to

Melina Hamilton Melina Dawn Hamilton (born 15 June 1976 in Rotorua) is a retired New Zealand athlete who specialised in the pole vault. She represented her country at the 2004 Summer Olympics, as well as two World Championships, without reaching the final. Her p ...

while she was a student at the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

in the late 1990s.

Gymnastics coach

Richards became a gymnastics coach at the Athlon club in Dunedin, and trained Rowena Davis and his daughter Deborah, who were a part of the New Zealand women's team that won the bronze medal in the all-around competition at the 1978 Commonwealth Games. He was subsequently appointed head coach of the New Zealand gymnastics team for 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 ...

, but the team did not complete because of the

boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...

that year.

Later life and death

Richards became an enthusiastic

lapidarist Lapidary () is the practice of shaping stone, minerals, or gemstones into decorative items such as cabochons, engraved gems (including cameos), and faceted designs. A person who practices lapidary techniques of cutting, grinding, and polishin ...

, and won the New Zealand Lapidary Cup in 1986 and 2011. He died on 1 July 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Merv 1930 births 2018 deaths Sportspeople from Oamaru People educated at King Edward Technical College New Zealand male pole vaulters Athletes (track and field) at the 1950 British Empire Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for New Zealand New Zealand athletics coaches Gymnastics coaches Medallists at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games New Zealand Athletics Championships winners 20th-century New Zealand sportsmen Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in athletics