New Zealand walking stalwart and rules expert Jack Tregurtha of Hastings passed away last evening (Thursday) after a short illness. Tregurtha, aged 71, was the president of Athletics Hawkes Bay Gisborne as well as secretary of the centre.
He was the guru of race walking in New Zealand, organising the national 50km walking championships in the Hawkes Bay each year. He kept meticulous records of walking events and individual records and produced and published an informative magazine/newsletter ‘Race Walking Contact’ throughout the year.
He was a keen walking competitor, setting a New Zealand M60 50km record of 5h 52m 7s in 1997 and he still holds the New Zealand 24 hour walking record for M60 of 153.670km. Tregurtha won numerous New Zealand age group walking titles.
Constitutions were Tregurtha’s forte and he was currently in the process of re-writing his centre’s constitution. He knew the Athletics New Zealand constitution and rules of competition backwards and he was always a vocal and at times entertaining speaker during any debate on the constitution and rules at Athletics New Zealand annual general meetings.
He was a committee member of the Hastings athletic club and club president Allan Potts said that he will be sadly missed.”Jack was our photofinish expert, carrying out that role at Nelson Park for many years,” said Potts. Tregurtha’s expertise in photofinishing was sought outside his centre being called on to officiate at the IAAF Area Permit meeting at Waitakere in February.
Tregurtha, a civil engineer, settled in the Hawkes Bay some 20 years ago after previously living in Wellington and Canterbury.
source Athletics New Zealand
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