Erik Horrie

Erik Horrie

2016 Australian Paralympic Team portrait of Horrie
Personal information
Nationality Australia
Born (1979-10-17) 17 October 1979
Sport
Country Australia
Sport Rowing
Medal record
Paralympic Games
2012 London Single Sculls
2016 Rio de Janeiro Single Sculls
World Championships
2013 Chungju Single Sculls - ASM1x.
2014 Amsterdam Single Sculls - ASM1x.
2015 Aiguebelette Single Sculls - ASM1x.
2011 Bled Single Sculls- ASM1x.

Erik Horrie (born 17 October 1979) is an Australian wheelchair basketball player and rower. He was a member of the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team. Switching to rowing in 2011, he made an immediate impact in the sport, first winning the NSW State Rowing Championships and then the National Rowing Championships in Adelaide. He won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Paralympics and gold medals at the 2013 , 2014 and 2015 World Rowing Championships. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.[1]

Personal

Horrie was born on 17 October 1979[2] in New Zealand.[3][4][5] At the age of seven, he was made a ward of the state due to domestic violence in his home and subsequently spent most of his childhood in foster care homes.[6] In 2001, he was in a motor vehicle accident that left him a paraplegic.[3][7] As of 2016, he lives in Penrith, New South Wales.[7] In studying youth work, Horrie said "I want to help underprivileged kids because I can relate to what they may be going through. I’m not saying I understand, but hopefully use my experiences to show them they have a choice." [6]

Horrie is married to Michelle and they have three children.[3][6]

Sporting career

Erik Horrie rowing on the water
Erik Horrie rowing on the water
Horrie competing at the 2012 London Paralympics

Basketball

Horrie was classified as a 4 point player.[8] He played in Australia's National Wheelchair Basketball League's Brisbane Spinning Bullets.[8][7]

He was a member of the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team. He attempted to make the team for the 2008 Summer Paralympics but did not get selected[3] for the national team until 2009 when he played in the 2009 IBWF AOZ Oceania Championship and the 2009 Rollers World Challenge.[8] Following that, he left the sport.[3]

Rowing

Horrie is classified as an AS rower[7] and is a member of the Dragon Rowing Club.[9][3] He switched to rowing in 2011 following the 2008 Summer Paralympics after having been identified by a selector from Rowing Australia.[3][7] In 2011, he did water training Breakfast Creek and off-water training at West End, Queensland.[3] The year, he had a scholarship with the Australian Institute of Sport.[10]

In 2011, he finished first at the New South Wales State Championship.[3] At the 2011 National Rowing Championships in Adelaide, he finished first.[9] In April 2011, he participated in a national team training camp at the Australian Institute of Sport.[9] In the arms, shoulders men's single scull event at the 2011 World Championships in Bled, Slovenia, he finished third.[4][5][7] He competed in the 2012 World Rowing Cup 3 event in Germany.[11] He represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics and he won a silver medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x.[7][12][13][14]

At the 2013 World Championships in Chungju, Korea, he won a gold medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x.[15] He was coached by Jason Baker. He won back to back gold medals by winning the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x at the 2014 World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam, Netherlands.[16]

Horrie won his third consecutive Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x title at the 2015 World Championships in Aiguebelette, France.[17]

At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, he won the silver medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x. This repeated his result at the London Olympics.

Paratriathlon

In 2013, he competed in the first ever paratriathlon held in Australia.[18]

He placed 2nd of 8 male handcycle/wheelchair athletes in the OTU Paratriathlon Oceania Championships in 2014.[19]

Recognition

In November 2014, he was awarded the 2014 World Rowing Para Rower of the Year.[20] In November 2015, he was awarded the New South Wales Institute of Sport Male Athlete of the Year.

References

Wikinews has related news: Australian adaptive rowers prepare as Paralympics looms
  1. ↑ "Australian Paralympic Rowers to turn silver into gold". Australian Paralympic Committee News. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  2. ↑ "Athlete profile: Erik Horrie". Rowing Australia.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Whiting, Michael (24 February 2011). "High hopes for Horrie". City North News. Brisbane, Australia. p. 11. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Two more Aussie boats qualify for Olympics". Australia: AAP News. 2 September 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Australian win at rowing world champs". Australia: AAP News. 2 September 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 Logue, Matt (2 July 2016). "Paralympic rower Erik Horrie takes positives out of everything life throws at him". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Erik Horrie". Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee. 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  8. 1 2 3 "Basketball Australia : Erik Horrie". Basketball Australia. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  9. 1 2 3 Whiting, Michael (17 March 2011). "Sports extra with Michael Whiting". City North News. Brisbane, Australia. p. 55. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "OLYMPIC HOPEFULS". Canberra Times. Canberra, Australia. 26 November 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  11. ↑ "Erik Horrie Of Australia Competes In The Adaptive Events... News Photo". Getty Images AU. 14 June 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  12. ↑ "WEEKEND SCOREBOARD". The Australian. Australia. 2 April 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  13. ↑ "2012 Aust Rowing Team". Australia: AAP News. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  14. ↑ "WEEKEND SCOREBOARD". The Australian. Australia. 2 April 2012. p. 32. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  15. ↑ "Golden Day for Australian Crews". Rowing Australia News. 28 August 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
  16. ↑ "Two golds for Australian rowing at the World champs". Sportsfan, 28 August 2014. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  17. ↑ "Horrie, Ross and Bellis crowned champions three years in a row". Australian Paralympic Committee News. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
  18. ↑ "Erik Horrie". Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee. 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
  19. ↑ http://www.triathlon.org/results/result/2014_penrith_otu_paratriathlon_oceania_championships/265460
  20. ↑ "World Rowing announces 2014 Award winners". World Rowing News, 7 November 2014. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
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