It is with sadness that Australian Sailing reports the loss of Past President Tony Manford (1931-2020).

Tony was a long-standing member of the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club in Perth, having originally joined as a member in 1942.

“On behalf of the entire Australian sailing community I would like to thank Tony for his contribution to our sport,” said current Australian Sailing President Daniel Belcher. “Tony gave so much in his role as President of the Australian Yachting Federation, and it was through that immense contribution that he helped shape the way we administer our sport today.” 

Tony started his sailing career in Cadet dinghies, moving onto Dragons, Solings, 5.5m’s and Etchells with a distinguished career that included involvement in the Australian Olympic teams in Tokyo (1964 – Reserve Helmsman) and Mexico City (1968 – Yachting Captain and Team Manager).  He also won the Prince Philip Cup (Australasian Dragon Championships) five times, a feat of which he was especially proud.

“It is incredibly sad to see the passing of a Western Australian sailing champion,” said Australian Sailing Board Member Skip Lissiman OAM. “He was an inspiration to a whole generation of Western Australians, including myself. He was a great mentor to me, and it was an honour and a pleasure to race against him in several classes. He will be sadly missed, and we all send our most sincere condolences to Toby and the rest of his family.”

Manford also made a mighty contribution to the sport off the water. Throughout his life he served as President of the Western Australian Dragon Association, Patron of the Western Australian Dragon fleet, Commodore (1974-76) and Vice Patron (1980-2019) of Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, President of Yachting Western Australia from 1967-1968 and ultimately President of the Australian Yachting Federation (now Australian Sailing) from 1970-1971.

Gary McNally, Commodore of Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, commented today saying “Tony made an outstanding contribution here at the club, across Western Australia and indeed the entire nation. He will be missed greatly.”

Tony is survived by his wife Toby, his sons Michael and Richard and daughter Susan.  Our thoughts and condolences are with them at this sad time.
 

With thanks to Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club for their assistance in collating this article.