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Jim Butterfield
There would be no Flora Duffy if it was not for Jim Butterfield. He is Bermuda’s first Ironman and the founding-father of the Bermuda Triathlon Association. 40 years later, his vision gave birth to Bermuda’s second Olympic medalist Flora Duffy and Bermuda’s first gold medal.
Jim Butterfield is a well-known Bermudian businessman, but he is not your typical businessman. He can oversee the demands of the board of directors, envision the direction of the company, and he can get his hands dirty if he has too. He is not a boss, he is a leader and knows how to socially interact with his staff to support, inspire and bring people from different backgrounds together. Beyond the office, he is involved in sporting activities and in many ways continues to give back to his country and its communities.
In 1977, Jim and a group of running friends who wanted to promote road running races and improve running standards in Bermuda started the first running club, The Mid Atlantic Athletic Club (MAAC). Jim would also play a leading role in establishing the Bermuda Triathlon Association in 1978.
Jim, his wife Debbie, Steve Petty and his wife Patty Petty, Peter Lever, and a few others running friends, organized the first triathlon ever contested on the island loosely modeled after the Hawaiian Ironman Triathlon. They had some teething problems, but the seed was planted, and the interest was there. For two years the event centered around the Palmetto Bay Hotel in Flatts, the organizers were all inexperienced and the format was in the wrong order, they swam in the sound, ran, and then cycled around Harrington Sound. The location created traffic congestion and policing issues forcing the event to be relocated to Sands Boat Club in Somerset, but the traffic and policing problem followed them.
The problem was eventually solved when the commander of the Naval Annex, Captain Leo allowed for the triathlon event to be hosted at Morgan’s Point, in Southampton. They would regularly have two events; a team event first, which drew in the swim, cycle and running club members, a week later they would have the individual event, where each participant would swim, cycle and run.
Jim wanted to do the Hawaiian Ironman Triathlon as a challenge; it is a grueling test of the human will and ability, so he and Gerry Benson started training for it. Jim won the local triathlon in 1980 and set off to Hawaii, where Jim finished 7th and Gerry placed 89th.
Jim had represented Bermuda in the 1972 Olympics in rowing (Sculler), 1978 he ran in Commonwealth Games marathon, finishing 17th and is Bermuda’s first Ironman. In 1980, he and a few friends started the Triathlon Association which led to Bermuda’s second Olympic medal and first gold.
Steve Petty Steve Petty
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Jim Butterfield Debbie Butterfield Sutherland Medeiros
The Bermuda Triathlon Association (BTA) established in 1981, is the National Governing Body in Bermuda for triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other relevant multi-sports. The BTA is a member of CAMTRI, the regional governing body covering Canada, North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, as well as a member of the international governing body for the sport, the International Triathlon Union (ITU). The Bermuda Triathlon Association is one of the oldest triathlon organizations in the world.
James ‘Jim’ Butterfield has a long and diverse sports career at a high level of competition at three different sports competitions. He has represented Bermudan in rowing at the 1972 Olympic Games before switching to long distance running, he ran the marathon at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada and placed 17th. Switching sports for a second time, he is Bermuda’s first Ironman pioneer, placing 7th in the Hawaii Ironman event in 1981. He founded Bermuda’s first running club, The Mid Atlantic Athletic Club (MAAC) in June 1977 and the Bermuda Triathlon Association (BTA) in 1981 and served as the first President.
Debbie Butterfield American-born Debbie Butterfield, and wife of Jim is an accomplished runner. In 1976, the organizers of the May 24th Derby, added a women’s category and Merenette Bean became the first official female winner with Debbie coming in second. In 1977, Debbie Butterfield won her first of seven May 24th Derby titles. In the 1985 Boston Marathon, Debbie finished 9th overall as the 4th woman out of 3931 runners, setting a personal best time of 2:43:47. Debbie and Jim Butterfield as entrepreneur opened their sporting goods store ‘The Sportseller’ on February 23, 1979, catering to runners, swimmers, triathletes, and fitness enthusiasts. In 1981, the office of The Sportseller would be the venue of the first meetings to establish the Bermuda Triathlon Association (BTA).
John Cash Patty Petty Steven Petty
Sutherland Madeiros, He is not athletic by any means but played an important role in the Administration/Business Development of the Triathlon Association. He is a close friend of the Butterfield family and bought The Sportseller from them in September 1989. He was elected and served as the sixth Mayor for the City of Hamilton for the period 2006 to 2009.
Steven Petty worked as Assistant General Manager of Butterfield & Vallis and was the first VicePresident of the Bermuda Triathlon Association (BTA). On three occasions, he was President of the BTA, for the periods 1986 to 1989, 2003 to 2006 and 2017 to 2020. Steve is still an active triathlete up to 2022.
Patty Petty is a Director of the Bermuda Olympic Association and serves on its Standards Committee. Having competed as a triathlete in the early years, she transitioned to an official and is currently a Level 2 ITU Technical Official. She has officiated at the Beijing, London and Rio Olympic Games, the Melbourne, and Glasgow Commonwealth Games and 3 Pan Am Games. She was also Technical Delegate at the World Duathlon Championships in Ottawa, Canada. Mrs. Petty has also used her organizational and travel experience/skills to be the Bermuda Team Manager at 21 World Age Group Championships, 1 Olympic Games and 1 Commonwealth Games for Bermuda’s elite athletes.
The late John Cash was an accountant and an avid swimmer, he was good with numbers, meticulous about details and would do everything by the book and then some. He enjoyed getting accurate figures, noting the fastest swim, cycle and run, and all by hand. This was a time long before the computer age with scoring chips attached to the athlete’s ankle. John thrived was a Chief Statistician and Master Results guru all with a package of sharp pencils and paper.
