Vern Hanaray

Vern Hanaray was one of the finest road cyclists produced by New Zealand, and an outstanding performer throughout the 1970s. He rode in the 1972 and 1976 Olympics, and the 1974 and 1978 Commonwealth Games.

Hanaray, born in Masterton in 1951, attended St John’s College in Hastings and rode for the Ramblers club in Havelock North. Oddly enough, his initial foray into top sport was as a road skater. In 1968 and 1969, he won the national intermediate 5-mile road title.

By 1970, cycling had claimed him. Still a teenager, he was third in the national road cycling championship and was named New Zealand Road Cyclist of the Year for the first time.

He really flowered the following year, when he won the first of his three national road titles, the North Island 6-day tour (after being 3rd the previous year), and, in the same race, the King of the Mountains crown, the first of several times he was to win that honour. He was always a champion on the hills. That performance in what was known as the Dulux tour really signalled Hanaray’s arrival as a major threat in New Zealand road racing.

He later said his first road title gave him the most satisfaction of the three he won. “I knew I was riding well, but there were bigger names than me in the race and guys from the East Coast of the North Island weren’t meant to win big races; it wasn’t a cycling ‘hotbed’.”

Hanaray was chosen for the road race at the 1972 Olympics, where much of the New Zealand focus was on Bruce Biddle, the Commonwealth Games road champion. Biddle duly delivered, finishing 4th and then being promoted to 3rd when the bronze medallist failed a drugs test. Hanaray didn’t finish the race.

At the 1974 Christchurch Commonwealth Games, Hanaray, a pre-race favourite, rode well in the 114-mile road race but dipped out of the medals, finishing 4th after 5h 17min 27s of hard slog. Australian Clyde Sefton won the race well, with Englishman Phil Griffiths of England a clear 2nd. Remo Sansonetti of Australia outsprinted Hanaray in the duel for 3rd, the Australian getting there by a second.

Sefton and Griffiths got away to a big lead early on and from then the other 42 riders were disputing only the bronze. Hanaray recalled the race and its aftermath: “Clyde Sefton and ‘Griffo’ were up the road and then Remo Sansonetti pipped me for bronze. I knew the Aussies, but at that time had never heard of ‘Griffo’.

“While in Christchurch I was out for a ride and bumped into Griffo. He invited me to come to England so I took him up on the offer - it was my route into European racing.”

Hanaray, Gary Bell and Jamie Richards were chosen to ride the road race at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Bell rode very solidly for 15th, Hanaray finished a further 11 minutes behind in 55th and Richards didn’t finish.

Hanaray’s final Games appearance was at the 1978 Edmonton Commonwealth Games, when he placed 20th in the road race, behind Bell, 3rd, and Stephen Cox, 18th. Blair Stockwell, the other New Zealander, was 30th. Phil Anderson of Australia won in 4h 22min 4s. The race was very tightly fought – Hanaray was only 1min 44s behind Anderson, yet well down the placings.

By 1980, Hanaray, Kevin Blackwell, Jack Swart and Cox looked to be a formidable road squad and there were strong hopes in cycling circles they’d return from the Moscow Olympics with a medal. They didn’t get the chance because of the American-led boycott. Cycling coach Ron Cheatley said at the time: “I have no doubt they - especially Hanaray - were capable of doing something special at the Olympics. They were devastated.”

Hanaray had a long and successful career riding in England and in other parts of Europe, notably Belgium, Holland and France. While based in Belgium, he lived on a barge in the centre of Ghent.

He always rode well in England – he won the Archer Grand Prix, was 2nd in the Manx International and 4th in the Tour of the Cotswolds, all top British races. In the prestigious Milk Race he rode strongly in 1976 and was even better in 1980, when he won a stage.

Pushed to nominate other top performances, he said: “In 1975 I won a stage in the Internationale Wielerarond Zesdaagse in the Netherlands. That was a nice win because the big-hitting West German team pursuiters were there.

“And in 1976 there was the Tweedaagse te Kemmel (Two days of Kemmel) over three stages. I won the first stage, was 2nd in the stage two time trial, then in the afternoon stage three I was 7th and that gave me the overall win. That was a memorable one.”

At home, Hanaray won national road titles in 1971, 1973 and 1977 and was named Road Cyclist of the Year in 1970, 1972 and 1974. He won the prestigious tour of the North Island in 1971 and 1973.

His competitive riding career at the top level virtually finished with the disappointment of not getting to Moscow. He then joined the famous ANC-Halfords team as a mechanic who was also called on to drive the team car during races.

Hanaray has gone on to build a major company based in Stoke-on-Trent in central England and is the Chief Executive of the APS Group.

This group encompasses Allyed Property Services - building, student letting, home improvements and industrial works; Hartshill International Fine Arts & Antiques; and Hartshill Health.

Hanaray divides his time between England and Florida, where he owns properly in Daytona Beach.