Mervyn Wood
| Mervyn Wood | |
|---|---|
| New South Wales Police Commissioner | |
|
In office 1977–1979 |
|
| Preceded by | Frederick Hanson |
| Succeeded by | Jim Lees |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
30 April 1917 Kensington, New South Wales |
| Died | 19 August 2006 (aged 89) Sydney |
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| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Australia
|
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| Men's rowing | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
 |
1948 London | Single sculls |
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1952 Helsinki | Single sculls |
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1956 Melbourne | Double sculls |
| British Empire (and Commonwealth) Games | ||
|
1950 Auckland | Single sculls |
|
1950 Auckland | Double sculls |
|
1954 Vancouver | Double sculls |
|
1954 Vancouver | Coxed four |
|
1958 Cardiff | Double sculls |
| Diamond Challenge Sculls | ||
|
1948 Henley-on-Thames | Single sculls |
|
1952 Henley-on-Thames | Single sculls |
| Gold Cup Challenge | ||
|
1948 Philadelphia | Single sculls |
|
1950 Philadelphia | Single sculls |
Mervyn Thomas "Merv" Wood, LVO, MBE, QPM (30 April 1917 – 19 August 2006) was an Australian rower of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He was an eight-time Australian national sculling champion, four-time Olympian and three-time Olympic medalist. He later rose to become the Police Commissioner of the New South Wales Police Force.
Wood was the youngest of four children born in Kensington, New South Wales. His father Thomas Wood had emigrated to Australia and entered the Police Force in 1905. Wood grew up in Randwick and attended Sydney Boys High School, graduating in 1934, where he represented his school in rugby union, swimming and most successfully, rowing.
Following High School graduation, Wood became a Police Cadet and rowed for the New South Wales Police Rowing Club. The police team was selected to represent Australia at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. At the age of 19 years, Wood appeared in his first Olympics. His boat was eliminated in the repechage and did not make the final.
Upon his return, Wood made police constable. After the majority of his crew retired, Wood took up sculling. He worked in the police force in the Criminal Investigation Branch, and in 1944 joined the Royal Australian Air Force as a navigator.
After the end of World War II, Wood won State and National Championships in 1946, 1947 and 1948 and was selected to represent Australia in the single scull at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. Wood travelled to London ahead of the rest of the team and won the Diamond Challenge Sculls event at the Henley Royal Regatta, beating Bert Bushnell in the final. At the Olympics, Wood won all of his races handily including the final, which he won by 14 seconds. Wood celebrated by smoking his pipe – he was a lifelong smoker who only put aside the habit for the Olympics.
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