Olympic Yachtsman Owen Churchill Dies

Owen Churchill, 89, one of the Southland’s most revered yachtsmen and the oldest surviving Olympic gold medalist, died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles.

Churchill was an honorary member of virtually every yacht club on the West Coast and an active member of the California, Los Angeles, St. Francis and Catalina Island clubs, and the Yacht Club de France.

Churchill sailed in the 1928 Olympics on the Zuider Zee in Holland but did not win a medal.

He had the eight-meter Angelita built specifically for the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, where he won a gold medal. He also sailed the Angelita in the 1936 Games at Kiel, Germany, but did win a medal.

Churchill is survived by his wife, Norma; daughters Mrs. Tony Lance of Laguna Beach and Mrs. Pat Wink of Michigan, and a stepdaughter, Maria Maxwell of Los Angeles.