John Vigurs

Competing for London Rowing Club, John Vigurs and Simon Crosse, the son of the rector of Henley, won the senior pairs at the Molesey Regatta in 1955. Two weeks earlier they had competed in the Silver Goblets at Henley but were beaten by the Russian holders Igor Buldakov and Viktor Ivanov.

In 1958 Vigurs was in the Barn Cottage four that won the Stewards’ Challenge Cup at Henley and that same year he also won the British Empire and Commonwealth Games coxed fours gold medal at Cardiff. Vigurs was in the 1959 Wyfold winning crew at Henley and also took part in the European Championships at Mâcon, France with the London RC coxed fours.

Vigurs was a member of the Molesey Boat Club that beat Oxford University to win the Grand Challenge Trophy at Henley for the first time in 1960. That same year he went to the Roma Olympics and reached the final of the coxless fours finishing fifth. Four years earlier he rowed with the eights in practice for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, but never got selected. Vigurs added two more Commonwealth Games medals at Perth, Australia, in 1962 when he won bronze in both the coxed fours and eights. He later became a boat builder.