Whatever Happened To? - John Bertrand
The Age
Friday October 27, 2006
The man who led Australia to victory in the '83 America's Cup now races only once a year. In a few weeks, he pits himself against an old foe.
Where were you when Australia II crossed the finish line to win the America's Cup? The moment in September 1983 lives on in popular memory. Alan Bond's dollars, Ben Lexcen's winged keel and Bob Hawke's famous words: "Any boss who sacks anyone for not turning up today is a bum." To the strains of Men At Work's Down Under, Australia revelled in not only smashing a 132-year-old American record but we came from behind (3-1) to do it. There are still plenty of people who stop John Bertrand in the street to tell him what they were doing when his boat crossed the line. He doesn't mind. In fact, he enjoys it. At the time, it took him five days to return from Newport, Rhode Island to tickertape parades in Australia. He promptly fell ill with pneumonia - 13 years of trying for the Cup had taken its toll. He spent the next eight months with his wife, Rasa, and children Lucas, Andre and Sunshine, lost interest in his sail-making company and decided it was time to get a new job. "I rang Bob Hawke and said, 'I want to work for the most visionary business leader in the country'. And the next day I was on a plane to Sydney to meet up with Sir Peter Abeles." The transport magnate told Bertrand (who holds a degree in mechanical engineering and a Master of Science) that he could pick where he wanted to work in his empire. Bertrand chose a solar energy company, Ansett Energy, based in Israel and was marketing director for three years. That is, until oil prices halved and the sun lost its shine. Back in Australia, Bertrand started a commercial and residential property company and in the mid-1990s he moved on to co-found internet-based broadcaster Quokka Sports. Its mantra was "broadcasting from the inside out" and it would do things such as give marathon runners transmitter pills to broadcast pulse rates during races. Quokka (with NBC) provided official internet coverage for the Sydney 2000 Olympics. After the internet bubble burst in 2000, Bertrand formed his current media business, World Wide Entertainment, which exports "magazine-style" content to cable and satellite television channels in 160 countries. There are other strings to his bow: he is chairman of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, which supports young athletes, and the Alannah and Madeline Foundation, which supports children who are the victims of violent crime or bullying; he is on the public-speaking circuit; you might even spot him on late-night television flogging Old Gold Chocolate with a glass of vino. He's a life member of the Royal Brighton Yacht Club and the Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club, where he goes to sip lattes - he has a holiday house in Portsea. But does he still sail? Once a year, he races Etchell Class yachts, and later this month you can catch him duelling with the zinc-cream-lipped skipper of US yacht Liberty, Dennis Connor. The pair will meet in Perth at the Etchell Class world championships and Bertrand - 60 in December - admits the rivalry is still there. "Absolutely. But it's all fun - it's not sheep stations."
© 2006 The Age