Harold Cudmore competed in the men’s Flying Dutchman class at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games alongside Richard O’Shea, finishing 17th.
Harold went on to become one of the most celebrated figures in international sailing – a legendary match racing helmsman and tactician who skippered British and Irish challengers in multiple America’s Cup campaigns and became one of the sport’s most respected strategic minds.

Born in Cork on 21 April 1944 and a member of the Royal Cork Yacht Club at Crosshaven, Cudmore’s Olympic appearance was the beginning of a career of extraordinary distinction in international sailing.

The Flying Dutchman was described by team manager Peter Gray as an ‘ultra-technical class’ requiring exceptional boat preparation, and the conditions at the Kiel regatta in 1972 challenged all the Irish sailing crews with light and unpredictable winds.