Recreation

Our Canterbury Summer Olympians

See also:

The next Summer Olympic Games will be held in London in July and August 2012. They will be followed by the Paralympics in August and September.

The official website has details of venues, news and latest projects for the games.

2008 Olympics

In August 2008, 185 athletes represented New Zealand at the summer Olympics. Many had Canterbury links either by birth or residence.

Athletes with Canterbury connections:

  • Rebecca Wardell (athletics)
  • Clare Bodensteiner, Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe, Natalie Purcell, Lisa Wallbutton, Nonila Wharemate, Suzie Bates (basketball)
  • Joanne Kiesanowski, Hayden Roulston, Marc Ryan (cycling)
  • Mark Todd (equestrian)
  • Jeremy Brockie, Ryan Nelsen (football)
  • Gareth Brooks, Stacey Carr, Jaimee Claxton, Dean Couzins, Kate Saunders, Bradley Shaw, Hayden Shaw (hockey)
  • Nathan Cohen, Carl Meyer (rowing)
  • Graeme Ede (shooting)
  • Helen Norfolk (swimming)
  • Andrea Hewitt (triathlon)
  • Mark Spooner (weightlifting)

Cantabrian Olympians from the past

Anthony WildingAnthony Wilding was one of Christchurch’s most famous tennis players, but the Wimbledon champion also represented his country at the Olympics. Anthony Wilding A Sporting life puts his achievements alongside those of Jack Lovelock.

Jack Lovelock grew up in South Canterbury and was a doctor, athlete, military man and journalist. Fellow Timaru Boys’ High student Graeme Woodfield has written one of the most comprehensive biographies of the man who won gold in the mile race at Berlin in 1936.

Four years earlier Cyril Stiles, known as Bob, won silver in Los Angeles in 1932 with Fred ‘Rangi’ Thompson. Thompson, according to the his profile on the NZ Olympic Committee site, worked at Wilson Tanneries, lost his arm in an industrial accident, and later became a greengrocer in High Street. Both men continued their association with the Avon Club and the boat they won the silver medal in remains in the clubs rooms.

Peter Mander and Jack Cropp both lived in the eastern suburbs of Christchurch and were New Zealand’s first yachting representatives. They won gold at Melbourne in 1956 after a French protest led to the disqualification of the Australian team.

Valerie Sloper (Young) represented New Zealand at Tokyo in 1964 and also had tremendous Commonwealth Games success. She was born in Ashburton.

Boxer Brian Maunsell also went to the Tokyo games. He still lives in Christchurch.

Did you know?

Annelise Coberger — the first person from the southern hemisphere to win a medal at the Winter Olympics — was born in Christchurch in 1971. She took silver in the slalom at Albertville in France in 1992. She also won several World Cup podium places.

Mene Mene, father of Chris and Bernice Mene, competed in the decathlon at the 1974 Christchurch Commonwealth Games and went as an official to the Olympics in 1992 and 1996.

Rowers Athol Earl and John Hunter were gold medal winners in Munich in 1972, and Earl won bronze in Montreal in 1976. Hunter attended the 1968 Olympics and also was later an official for the New Zealand rowing team.

Lindsay Wilson of Methven also shared Olympic glory, as did Gary Robertson. Robertson had a stint in Christchurch as a rubbish collector and as Rangi Ruru rowing coach. He was born in Oamaru, so we can’t deprive Otago of their famous son. Robertson was instrumental in setting up the rowing club at the Rangi Ruru and has seen Rangi Ruru become the power of national schoolgirls’ rowing.

Ian Ballinger won 1968 Olympic bronze in Mexico in smallbore shooting. He was 43, and the teams oldest member. The country’s most famous shooter later opened a firearms store in Christchurch.

In 1976 Barry and Selwyn Maister won gold at Montreal along with Paul Ackerley, Thur Borren, John Christensen, Tony Ineson . All of these men played for the University club. Alan Chesney played for Harewood.

Neroli Fairhall was an Olympian in Los Angeles in 1984 and a paralympian who competed in several games.

Chris Timms won a yachting gold in 1984 and silver in 1988 with Nelson’s Rex Sellers.

Donna Wilkins (formerly Loffhagen) is prehaps best-known as a Silver Fern netballer, but she has represented New Zealand at Olympic level in basketball.

Paralympian Graham Condon

Graham Condon won a total of 36 medals, including 7 gold in his Paralympic career. His life ended tragically in 2007 when he was struck by a car while riding his hand-propelled bicycle. Profile on Wikipedia. A new recreation and sport centre in Christchurch was named after him and opened in 2011.

Help us complete this list

This is our initial list — do you have someone to add to our file?

More profiles

Profiles from the New Zealand Olympic Committee website: