| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth name | John William Coutts | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 14 August 1955 Marton, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Country | New Zealand | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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John William Coutts (born 14 August 1955) is a former New Zealand swimmer.
Coutts was born in Marton in 1955, [1] and grew up in Hastings. He received his education at Hastings Central, Hastings Intermediate, and Hastings Boys' High Schools. [2] Coutts was the first person to swim Cook Strait in both directions. [2]
Coutts won a bronze medal in the 200 m butterfly at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, New Zealand. [3] He competed at the 1975 World Aquatics Championships in Cali, Colombia. [2] He represented New Zealand at the 1976 Summer Olympics, competing in the 100 m butterfly and 200 m butterfly. [4]
Coutts was formerly a director of Carlile Swimming, the largest private swimming school in the world, [2] originally set up by Australian swimming legend Forbes Carlile and his wife Ursula Carlile. [5]
At age 16, he was voted Hawke's Bay Sportsperson of the Year in 1972. In June 2012, he was inducted into the Hawke's Bay's Sports Hall of Fame. [2] He is married to Sally, and they have four children. Coutts and his wife live in Australia. [2]