John Bertrand (sailor, born 1946)

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = John Bertrand
{{nobold|{{post-nominals|country=AUS|size=100%|AO}}}}

| full_name = John Edwin Bertrand

| birth_date = {{Birth-date and age|20 December 1946}}

| birth_place = Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

| headercolor = lightsteelblue

| medaltemplates =

{{Medal|Country | {{AUS}} }}

}}

John Edwin Bertrand AO (born 20 December 1946) is a yachtsman from Australia, who skippered Australia II to victory in the 1983 America's Cup, ending 132 years of American supremacy, and the only time Australia has won.{{cite web |title=John Bertrand |url=https://sahof.org.au/hall-of-fame-member/john-bertrand/ |website=Sport Australia Hall of Fame |access-date=16 October 2022}} Bertrand won the bronze medal in the Finn competition at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/be/john-bertrand-1.html |title=John Bertrand |access-date=24 September 2020 |archive-date=13 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113142534/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/be/john-bertrand-1.html |url-status=live }} In 2010 and 2016,{{cite web|url=http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2016/09/10/john-bertrand-wins-etchells-worlds|title=John Bertrand wins Etchells Worlds|date=10 September 2016 |access-date=2 December 2016|archive-date=1 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201082027/http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2016/09/10/john-bertrand-wins-etchells-worlds/|url-status=live}} he won the world Etchells class sailing championships. He is a life member of both the Royal Brighton Yacht Club in Melbourne, and the Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club.

==Biography==

John Bertrand was born in Melbourne, Victoria.

He wrote Born to Win, The Power of a Vision, about the 1983 America's Cup victory, including insightful observations on the strategy for an unfavoured team against very long odds. During the 1983 competition, Bertrand and his crew deliberately employed their own psychological strategy ahead of the America's Cup breakthrough in refusing to refer to the all-conquering American team by their names and instead calling their opposition simply "the red boat" in order to mislead the rival.{{cite web |url=http://www.smh.com.au/sport/olympics/rio-2016/olympics-swimming/john-bertrand-mack-horton-gold-medal-was-a-defining-moment-of-rio-olympics-20160807-gqn83l.html |title=John Bertrand: Mack Horton gold medal was a 'defining moment' of Rio Olympics |date=8 August 2016 |publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald |access-date=8 August 2016 |archive-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113060314/http://www.smh.com.au/sport/olympics/rio-2016/olympics-swimming/john-bertrand-mack-horton-gold-medal-was-a-defining-moment-of-rio-olympics-20160807-gqn83l.html |url-status=live }} In the 2016 Rio Olympics, Mack Horton, an Australian freestyle swimming champion, admitted the criticism towards another swimmer Sun Yang was a deliberate strategy to try and gain a mental edge on his rival, borrowing from the tactics employed by Bertrand in the lead-up to Australia II's famous triumph in 1983.{{cite web |url=http://www.smh.com.au/sport/olympics/rio-2016/olympics-swimming/john-bertrand-mack-horton-gold-medal-was-a-defining-moment-of-rio-olympics-20160807-gqn83l.html |title=John Bertrand: Mack Horton gold medal was a 'defining moment' of Rio Olympics |date=8 August 2016 |publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald |access-date=8 August 2016 |archive-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113060314/http://www.smh.com.au/sport/olympics/rio-2016/olympics-swimming/john-bertrand-mack-horton-gold-medal-was-a-defining-moment-of-rio-olympics-20160807-gqn83l.html |url-status=live }}

Bertrand is the chairman of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame (2005+) and The Alannah and Madeline Foundation (2001+).{{Cite web|url=https://sahof.org.au/about/board-members/|title=Sport Australia Hall of Fame website|access-date=24 September 2020|archive-date=24 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924143438/https://sahof.org.au/about/board-members/|url-status=live}}

He is also the President of Swimming Australia (Oct 2013+).

Honours

26 January 1984: Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in recognition of service to yachting, particularly as skipper of the Australia II in the America's Cup challenge 1983.{{cite web|title=AD84|url=https://www.gg.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/honours/AD84.pdf|accessdate=29 July 2022|publisher=Governor General's Office of Australia|archive-date=8 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408072230/https://www.gg.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/honours/AD84.pdf|url-status=dead}}
10 December 1985: Induction into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame{{cite web|url=https://sahof.org.au/hall-of-fame-member/john-bertrand/|title=John Bertrand|publisher=Sport Australia Hall of Fame|access-date=7 September 2013|archive-date=23 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723105349/https://sahof.org.au/hall-of-fame-member/john-bertrand/|url-status=live}}
18 September 1993: Member of the America's Cup Hall of Fame for outstanding achievement in the America's Cup.
14 July 2000: Australian Sports Medal for outstanding achievement in the America's Cup and general contribution
1 January 2001: Centenary Medal for service to Australian society through the sport of Sailing.
2008 Melburnian of the Year for community leadership.
25 October 2013: Awarded an Honorary Doctorate, Victoria University.
10 October 2014: Elevated to Legend of The Sport Australia Hall of Fame.
2014: Bertrand was made a Monash University Vice Chancellor Professorial Fellow.
2016: Upgraded to Officer of the Order of Australia (AO), the 2016 Queen's Birthday Honours list. In recognition for sporting administration, in particular swimming and sailing, children's welfare, higher education and mentoring of young people.{{cite web |url=http://www.gg.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/honours/qb/qb2016/nS_29ods1A/Media%20Notes%20-%20AO.pdf |title=Officer (AO) in the General Division of the Order of Australia |work=The Queen’s Birthday 2016 Honours List |publisher=Governor-General of Australia |date=13 June 2016 |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615121237/http://www.gg.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/honours/qb/qb2016/nS_29ods1A/Media%20Notes%20-%20AO.pdf |archive-date=15 June 2016 |url-status=dead }}

Personal

Bertrand has a Bachelor of Engineering (Monash University 1970){{cite news |title=It took an engineer ! |issue=8–83 |work=Monash Reporter |publisher=Monash University |url=https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/2569662/1983-10-05.pdf |quote=...performance of a 12·metre yacht sail'. It dealt with jib and mainsail configurations |access-date=16 October 2022 |date=October 5, 1983}}{{cite web |title=John Bertrand - Hall of Fame |url=https://www.monash.edu/teammonash/history-and-achievements/hall-of-fame/john-bertrand |website=Performance, Representation and Engagement Programs |publisher=Monash University |access-date=15 October 2022 |language=en}} and a Master of Science (Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1972).{{cite news |last1=Coveney |first1=Donna |title=Koch to defend America's Cup with Milgram, all-female crew |url=https://news.mit.edu/1994/koch-0316 |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=MIT News |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |date=March 16, 1994 |language=en}}{{cite news |title=Hall of Fame Interview: John Edwin Bertrand |url=https://www.sailingworld.com/racing/hall-fame-interview-john-edwin-bertrand/ |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=Sailing World |date=7 July 2003}}{{cite news |title=All in the Same Boat |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2007/05/07/225550/all-in-the-same-boat/ |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=MIT Technology Review |language=en}}{{cite book |last1=Gentry |first1=Arvel |author1-link=Arvel Gentry |title=Sailing Aerodynamics: Theory and Practice |url=https://www.yachtmasters.hu/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Arvel-Gentry-cikkek.pdf |access-date=15 October 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Hewett |first1=Jennifer |title=Why lessons from America's Cup win still matter |url=https://www.afr.com/work-and-careers/leaders/why-lessons-from-america-s-cup-win-still-matter-20220916-p5biol |access-date=15 October 2022 |work=Australian Financial Review |date=18 September 2022 |language=en |quote=This is the man whose university mechanical engineering thesis was titled 'The Optimum Angle of Attack of America’s Cup Sails', after all – years ahead of his fourth attempt to defeat the New York Yacht Club in Newport in 1983.}}
He has been married, since 1969,{{cite book |last1=Moore |first1=George |title=Australian Legends |date=2001 |publisher=R.I.C. Publications |isbn=978-1-86311-675-6 |page=19 |language=en |quote=In 1966 he enrolled at Monash University in Melbourne to take an ... He completed his degree in 1969 and, after marrying Rasa Padgurskis in the same year...}} to Rasa Bertrand, whom he met as a student.

Notes

References

{{cite book |last1=Bertrand |first1=John |last2=Robinson |first2=Patrick |title=Born to Win: A Lifelong Struggle to Capture the America's Cup |date=1985 |publisher=Hearst Marine Books |isbn=978-0-688-04349-0 |language=en}}

::Sydney : Bantam Books, circa 1985. {{ISBN|0-553-05118-0}}

{{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070319202710/http://www.monash.edu.au/alumni/prominent-alumni/john-bertrand.html |title=Prominent alumni: Mr John Bertrand, AM, Monash University }}
[https://herreshoff.org/inductees/john-bertrand/ America's Cup Hall of Fame biography]
{{cite news |last1=DeVoss |first1=David |title=The Race to Recover the Cup : Loss of the America's Cup to Australia in 1983 Was the 'Sputnik of Yachting,' a High-Tech Embarrassment That Galvanized U.S. Industry Into Action. This Year, American Teams--With Lots of Corporate Help--Aren't Leaving Anything to Chance. |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-08-31-tm-14767-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=31 August 1986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221015161744/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-08-31-tm-14767-story.html |archive-date=2022-10-15}}

External links

{{World Sailing|id=AUSJB83|www=john-bertrand}}
{{SAHOF|john-bertrand}}
{{AOC}}
{{Olympics.com profile|john-edwin-bertrand|org_archive=20160927023412}}
{{Olympedia}}
Untold: [https://www.netflix.com/title/81026435 The Race of the Century] at Netflix