Festival patron
Yachting legend John Bertrand AO has been announced the new patron of the Australian Wooden Boat Festival.
02 December 2020
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Despite the COVID-enforced cancellation of the ever-popular Australian Wooden Boat Festival (AWBF), scheduled for February 2021, the AWBF board and management have used the downtime to assemble a new team to take the festival forward into the future.
“The AWBF is already one of Tasmania’s largest and most prestigious events and our aim is maintain and grow that enviable reputation,” said the festival’s General Manager Paul Stephanus.
“To this end, it is our great honour to welcome John Bertrand AO as our first ever Festival Patron. Mr Bertrand, a highly successful international businessman, philanthropist and sportsman, is a legend of Australian sport.
“Within his five America’s Cup campaigns, he was skipper of Australia 11, winner of the 1983 America’s Cup. The victory was considered by the Confederation of Australian Sport as the greatest team performance in 200 years of Australian sport.
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“He is Chair of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame and recently retired President of Swimming Australia. For 15 years, he was also Chair of the Alannah and Madeline Children’s Foundation, which grew out of the Port Arthur tragedy. Her Royal Highness, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, is the Foundation’s International Patron.
Stephanus said, “It is a great honour that he has accepted our invitation to become our Patron.”
“His business experience and empathy for what we have built over the last 26 years will be a major asset as we continue to grow into the future,” Stephanus said.
“As well as our new Festival Patron, the AWBF is also pleased to welcome three new board members; Scott Rankin, Jane Worrall, and Bass Gamlin.
“It’s an exciting time to plan our next series of festivals as the AWBF navigates a post-COVID world and prepares for an exciting future,” Stephanus said.
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