John Field-Richards

John Charles Field -Richards OBE ( born May 10, 1878 in Penzance, Cornwall, † April 18, 1959 in Christchurch, Dorset) was a British motor boaters.

John Field -Richards was born as the son of a Cornish clergyman taught privately and later studied at Keble College, Oxford. Although he is not mentioned in the Olympic report from 1908, comes from media reports indicate, however, that he was a crew member on the Gyrinus by Thomas Thornycroft at the Olympic Games 1908 in London, together with Bernard Redwood. There he was, together with Redwood and Thornycroft, two-time Olympic champion in power boating, in the B- Class and C-Class, each about 40 miles. In the B class, where only boats with a maximum length of 20 meters were allowed to participate, launched the Gyrinus against John Marshall Gorham, using Quicksilver. However, this had to give up after two laps because water had gone into the boat, so that Field -Richards together with the two other members became the first Olympic champion in power boating.

In a day later discharged C- class boats were only seven feet long and weigh up to 800 kg. Again launched the Gyrinus with only one competitor, the Sea Dog Warwick Wright. But this time the rival had to quit because the engine was overheated. Field -Richards and the Gyrinus were so double Olympic champion. In the final competition, the A-Class, the Gyrinus not go to the start, it won the Frenchman Émile Thubron.

Since motorboat after 1908 never again an Olympic sport would remain Field -Richards, Thornycroft and Redwood today with two gold medals, the most successful athletes of this sport.

Field -Richards was in the First World War as a Major Staff Officer in the Hampshire Regiment and the Yorkshire Regiment. After the war he was awarded the Order of the British Empire.