Obituary: Jonathan Rogers – Lymington GP who won several international yacht races
HIGHLY respected Lymington GP Jonathan Rogers, who founded the town’s pioneering Wednesday Junior Sailing programme for youngsters of all backgrounds, has died at the age of 81.
A first class sailor in his own right, Jonathan and his brother Jeremy built and raced dinghies and yachts, winning many major international races.
Born in Thaxted in 1939, Jonathan and his older brothers Tim and Jeremy spent their early years in Canada where their father was involved in setting up flying schools. As they returned to the UK at the end of the war their convoy of 70 ships accepted the surrender of a pack of German U boats.
Back in England they moved to Lulworth Cove where Jonathan and Jeremy found a Spitfire rescue dinghy and began experimenting with rigs in a bid to get her to sail upwind.
The adventures continued in Keyhaven, where he and Jeremy tried to cobble together a boat from salvaged materials, and their mother made the sail.
With his father often abroad, first at Bomber Command then in Germany helping to set up NATO, Jonathan was sent away to school at Clayesmore where he became captain of rugby, head boy and later secured a scholarship up to Kings College, Cambridge.
Excelling in his studies, he initially read economics but changed to medicine following the sudden death of his mother whom he was very close to.
Back in Lymington for the school holidays, Jonathan raced a Finn dinghy, and took part in Olympic trials in 1960. He and Jeremy built punts to take back to Cambridge to fund the next term, and later crafted a Classic Folkboat in their garden.
With an interest in renal medicine, Jonathan trained at Guys Hospital in London. In 1965 he qualified and won a Nuffield Fellowship in Tropical Medicine leading to trips to the Far East, the Himalayas and Middle East where he spent time in a leper colony.
He became a junior lecturer in medicine at Guys, where he met his future wife Ann, the senior staff nurse.
Sailing and an interest in family medicine drew Jonathan and Ann to Lymington. In the winter of 1968 Jonathan helped Jeremy build a 26ft yacht which, with Ann and Jeremy’s wife Fiona, they raced with great success, coming second in the Round the Island Race.
Over the next 10 years they become more ambitious, winning major international events including Cowes Week, the One Ton Cup, the Admiral’s Cup, the Round the Island Race and the Fastnet.
Jonathan was navigator which became increasingly handy for their post-racing family adventures – now with children Ben, Kate and Nicolas.
Jonathan loved his role as a GP at the heart of the community and was inspired to set up the Wednesday Junior Sailing scheme based at the Royal Lymington Yacht Club in 1984, to enable children from all backgrounds to learn to sail.
He persuaded sailors to loan their boats and volunteer as instructors, and local businesses to fund new boats. Within a short while 250 local children were involved. Princess Anne become patron in 1985 and the Lymington junior regatta soon became the highlight of the dinghy summer.
There have been many successful graduates of the programme, including Jonathan’s youngest son Nicholas, who won the Olympic silver medal in the 470 in Athens and again in Beijing.
Jonathan’s other great passion was woodwork. As well as building boats, he also made furniture for friends and family. Even this year he built a linnet cage for a neighbour, a kite surfing board for a grandson and, with his son Nicholas a 23ft motorboat Shadow.
Jonathan is survived by Ann, his children Ben, a GP in Jersey; Kate, an ENT surgeon in Poole; and Nicholas, a professional sailor living in Lymington. He also leaves eight grandchildren who affectionately knew him as Grandpa Chocolate.
