| Bernard Nottage | |
| Nationality: | Bahamian |
| Sport: | Sprinting |
| Event: | 100 metres |
| Birth Date: | 23 October 1945 |
| Birth Place: | Nassau, Bahamas |
| Death Place: | Florida, United States |
Bernard J. Nottage, MD (23 October 1945 - 28 June 2017) was a Bahamian sprinter, gynecologist and politician.[1] [2] He competed in the men's 100 metres and 200 metres at the 1968 Summer Olympics.[3] [4] He finished sixth in the 1967 Pan American Games 200 metres.[5]
Dr. Nottage attended the University of Aberdeen.[6] His brother, Kendal, as youth and sports minister, was instrumental in bringing Muhammad Ali to the Bahamas for his controversial last fight in December 1981.[1] [7]
Nottage was born in Nassau, Bahamas, on 23 October 1945.[8] He attended the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, studying medicine.[9] Whilst at Aberdeen, he won athletics titles in the 100 yards and 200 yards in three consecutive years in the late 1960s.[4] He also competed internationally for Scotland during the same time.[4]
At the 1967 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Nottage finished in sixth place in the men's 200 metres.[10] The following year, at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Nottage competed in three events.[4] He competed in the men's 100 metres,[11] the men's 200 metres,[12] and the men's 4 × 100 metres relay,[13] but did not advance from the heats in any of the events.[3] In the relay event, the team set a new national record that lasted for 25 years.[14]
In 1976, Nottage became the President of the Bahamas Amateur Athletic Association, and became the President of the Central American and Caribbean Athletic Confederation six year later.[3] In 1988, he was elected to a vice-presidential regional role of the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF).[4]
Nottage returned to the Bahamas and had a career in obstetrics and gynecology.[3] In 1986, he went on to become the medical director at St. Luke's Medical Center in Nassau.[3]
In 1987, Nottage became an MP with the Progressive Liberal Party.[4] His political career continued, and he served as the Minister of Health, the Minister of Education (1990-1992), the Minister of Consumer Affairs (1989-1990), and the Minister of National Security.[15] He was appointed Leader of the Opposition from 1993 to 1997. He was appointed as Minister of National Security from 2012 to 2017.[16] In 2000, he resigned from the Progressive Liberal Party to become the leader of the Coalition for Democratic Reform party.[3]
He died in June 2017 in Florida, at the age of 71,[4] [17] with his body lying in state at the House of Assembly.[18]