Newspaper Article 2007 – Unison Hawke’s Bay Sport Hall of Fame – 2007 inductees

Unison Hawke’s Bay Sport Hall of Fame

2007 inductees

Cyclist Vern Hanaray and athletes Rona McCarthy and Cleone Carnac are the latest inductees to the Unison Hall of Fame.

All three competed at either Olympic or Empire games level with distinction.

Vern Hanaray, who attended St John’s College in Hastings, competed at two Olympic Games – the 1972 Munich games and the 1978 Montreal games.

Vern also competed at the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch and the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada.

He was the 1970, ’72 and ’74 New Zealand Cyclist of the Year. Rona McCarthy, nee Tong, won a bronze medal in the 80-yards hurdles at the 1938 Empire Games in Sydney and was awarded an MBE in 1979 for Services to Sport.

Rona was also a top-class netball player and represented New Zealand in 1936. She was made a life member of Hawke’s Bay Netball in 1967, received a New Zealand service medal in 1970 and gave 43 years’ service to the Hastings Convent Old Girls’ Club.

Cleone Patricia Rivett Carnac, who died in 2003, won a bronze medal in the women’s javelin at the 1950 Empire Games while still a pupil at Napier Girls’ High School. She was aged 16.

Cleone held the New Zealand title five times in 1949 and then from 1951 to 1954.

She also represented Napier in hockey, netball and indoor basketball. She lived in Australia in 1955 and won the Victoria State Javelin title.

Cleone was also a talented golfer and was a member of the HB/PB Russell Grace team from 1969 to 1973.

Photo caption – OUTSTANDING: Rona McCarthy

Unison
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