| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Athol John Earl (1952-10-01)1 October 1952 (age 73) Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Height | 196 cm (6 ft 5 in)[1] |
| Weight | 95 kg (209 lb)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Sport | Rowing |
| Club | Avon Rowing Club |
Medal record | |
Athol John "Joe"Earl (born 1 October 1952)[1] is a former New Zealandrower who won two Olympic medals.
Earl was born in 1952 inChristchurch[1][2] and grew up on a farm inHawarden in North Canterbury.[3] He received his education atSt. Andrew's College, where he started rowing underFred Strachan. As Strachan was one of the national rowing selectors, Earl was picked ahead of more experienced oarsmen (according to his own statement) for the New Zealand eight that was to contest the1971 European Rowing Championships.[4] The eight won gold, to the surprise of everybody, at the regatta in Copenhagen. At the1972 Summer Olympics inMunich he teamed withDick Joyce,Wybo Veldman,John Hunter,Lindsay Wilson,Tony Hurt,Trevor Coker andGary Robertson andSimon Dickie (cox) to win the gold medal in the eights. He rowed with the men's eight in the1975 World Rowing Championships inNottingham, Great Britain, and won a bronze medal.[5] At the1976 Summer Olympics inMontreal he again crewed the eight which this time won the bronze medal. His crewmates this time wereAlec McLean,Ivan Sutherland,Trevor Coker,Peter Dignan,Lindsay Wilson,Tony Hurt andDave Rodger andSimon Dickie (cox).
Earl's father died on his way to Munich. Whilst doctors had advised against travel due to a weak heart, his parents went nonetheless and his father died when they were in Italy. Earl still went ahead with the competition, and Strachan remarked later that "he still performed". The funeral had to wait until the rowers had returned to New Zealand.[6] Joe Earl took over his father's farm until 1992. Afterwards, he was farming atBlackball on theWest Coast. He then went into real estate and was at first branch manager inRangiora. Since about 2009, he has sold real estate from Christchurch for PGG Wrightson.[3][2][7]
