5.5 metres, Open

The American boat Bingo took the lead by winning the second and third races, but Australia’s Barrenjoey won three races overall, and won the gold medal easily over Sweden’s Rush VII, skippered by Lars Thörn, the gold medalist in the event in 1956. The Americans, skippered by Don McNamara, would have won but were disqualified in the final race, and did not improve their point standings. Norway finished eighth, led by helmsman Crown Prince Harald.

The Barrenjoey helmsman was Bill Northam, who had a most unusual story. A highly successful businessman, he was chairman of the Australian sections of both Johnson & Johnson and Slazenger, and did not take up sailing until 1951, when he was 46-years-old. He only decided to try for the Olympics in 1963 and made the team, despite some Australian sailing authorities’ concerns about him competing in the Olympics as a 59-year-old.