Rugby player
 Paul Thorburn in 2014 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Paul Huw Thorburn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1962-11-24) 24 November 1962 (age 62) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Rheindahlen, West Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 14 st 2 lb (90 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Hereford Cathedral School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University College, Swansea | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Paul Thorburn (born 24 November 1962 in Rheindahlen, West Germany) is a former Neath RFC and international Wales rugby union player who played at full back and also featured in the Welsh international team.
Thorburn was a prolific long-distance goal kicker. He holds the record for the longest successful kick in an international test match (although not the longest in Rugby Union as a whole). He gained the record during the 1986 Five Nations Championship at Cardiff Arms Park with a penalty kick measuring exactly 70 yards 8 and a half inches (64.2m) against Scotland.
Thorburn was also in the Wales squad for the 1987 Rugby World Cup, during which he scored a conversion that won Wales third place in the competition.
He retired from playing in 1991. He was tournament director for the World Cup in 1999 and also a former special projects manager for the Welsh Rugby Union.
In 2006 he joined Ospreys after leaving the Welsh Rugby Union, however he left the club in June 2010 to pursue other business interests.
References
- "THE Ospreys have paid tribute to Paul Thorburn after his surprise departure from the Liberty Stadium". Thisissouthwales.co.uk. 16 June 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
- "BBC Sport – Rugby Union – Ospreys confirm Paul Thorburn departure". BBC News. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
| Wales squad – 1987 Rugby World Cup third place | |
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| Forwards | |
| Backs | |
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   | This Welsh rugby union biography is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it. |
- 1962 births
- People educated at Hereford Cathedral School
- People from Neath Port Talbot
- Rugby union fullbacks
- Welsh rugby union players
- Wales international rugby union players
- Wales rugby union captains
- Neath RFC players
- Ebbw Vale RFC players
- Barbarian F.C. players
- Living people
- Alumni of Swansea University
- 1987 Rugby World Cup players
- Welsh rugby union biography stubs