![]() Bird at the 2016 Olympics | |
Personal information | |
---|---|
Nationality | ![]() |
Born | Pietermaritzburg, South Africa [1] | 11 May 1988
Height | 189 cm (6 ft 2 in) [1] |
Weight | 86 kg (190 lb) [1] |
Sport | |
Country | Australia |
Sport | Canoeing |
Event | Sprint canoe |
Club | Canning River Canoe Club [2] |
Team | Australia |
Coached by | Ramon Andersson (personal) Jimmy Owens (national) [3] |
Achievements and titles | |
Olympic finals | 2012, 2016 |
Stephen Bird (born 11 May 1988) is a South African-born Australian sprint canoeist. [2] [4] He is a three-time national champion (2010, 2011, and 2012) in the men's kayak doubles (200 m), and a member of the Canning River Canoe Club in Perth, Western Australia, under his personal coach Ramon Andersson. [2] [5]
Bird took up canoeing in 1996 in Richmond, South Africa, together with his brother. They used the kayaks left by his uncle, who immigrated to Australia that year. He attended Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal, during which time he was awarded his Protea Blazer for representing South Africa at junior level. In 2007 his family moved to Perth, Western Australia, where he studied commerce and psychology at the Curtin University. [3]
Bird qualified for the men's K-2 200 metres at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, by placing first from the 2012 ICF Oceania Qualification Tournament in Penrith, New South Wales. [6] [7] Bird and his partner Jesse Phillips finished sixth in the final by four hundredths of a second (0.04) behind the Argentine pair Miguel Correa and Rubén Voisard, with a time of 35.315 seconds. [8] [9]
Bird was the dominant K-1 paddler in the Rio 2016 selection events beating out his partner Jessie Philips, even though Steve and jessie had planned to go to the Olympics in a K2. He would go on to win gold in the 2016 Oceania Championships in Adelaide in February, and again at the 2016 National Sprint Championships the following month. [1] He went through heat three second with a time of 34.584. He went through semi final two second with a time of 34.650. He placed eighth in the A finals at the Rio Olympics with a time of 36.426.
Liam Heath is a British sprint canoeist. He is the most successful British canoeist at the Olympics with a total of four medals; he won a gold medal in the individual 200m kayak sprint event at the 2016 Summer Olympics and a bronze in the 2020 Olympics, as well as a silver in the men's double with Jon Schofield in 2016. and a bronze at the 2012 London Olympics in the K-2 200 with Schofield.
Dame Lisa Marie Carrington is a flatwater canoeist and New Zealand's most successful Olympian, having won a total of eight gold medals and one bronze medal. She won three consecutive gold medals in the Women's K‑1 200 metres at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2016 Summer Olympics and 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as gold in the same event at the 2011 Canoe Sprint World Championships. At the 2020 Summer Olympics she also won a gold medal in the K‑2 500 metres, with Caitlin Regal, and as an individual in the K‑1 500 metres. At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Carrington defended her titles in the K‑1 500 metres and K‑2 500 metres event and also won the K‑4 500 metres event. Carrington equalled Danuta Kozák's record of winning all three K-1, K-2, K-4 events, over 500 metres, at one Olympics.
Teneale Hatton is a New Zealand flatwater canoeist.
Murray Scott Stewart is an Australian kayaker. Stewart qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and teamed up with Riley Fitzsimmons, Lachlan Tame and Jordan Wood in the Men's K-4 500m sprint. The team did well in the heats clocking 1:22.662, came second in the semi-final, but couldn't repeat their best time coming in 6th in the final behind the eventual winner, Germany,
Tim Hornsby is a professional sailor, America's Cup sailor, and world champion that currently lives in Halifax, Canada. He competed with American Magic in the 36th America's cup. He has continued on with American magic for the 37th America’s Cup.
Jon Schofield is a British canoeist. He partnered with Liam Heath in the men's kayak double 200m sprint event, and they have won a bronze in K-2 200 at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and a silver at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the same event. They have also won gold at the European Championships three times as well as silver and bronze medals at the World Championships.
Hiroki Watanabe is a Japanese sprint canoeist born in Yamanashi prefecture. He won a bronze medal, along with his partner Keiji Mizumoto, in the men's kayak doubles at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China.
Yevgeniy Petrovich Alexeyev is a Kazakhstani sprint canoeist. He won a gold medal, as a member of the Kazakhstan men's kayak four, at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, and silver at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China. He also captured a bronze medal, along with his partner Alexey Podoinikov in the men's kayak doubles at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.
Rubén Oscar Voisard Rézola is an Argentine sprint canoeist. He won the gold medal in the men's kayak doubles at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada and silver medal in the men's kayak doubles at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, earning him a spot on the Argentine team for the Olympics. Voisard is also a member of the canoe and kayak team for Argentina's Natural Reserve Boating Association, and is coached and trained by Damian Dossena.
Jesse Phillips is an Australian sprint canoeist. He is a five-time national champion (2010-2014) in the men's kayak doubles, and a member of the Bayswater Paddle Sports Club, under his personal coach Ramon Andersson. Phillips has also studied towards a bachelor's degree in media at Murdoch University but deferred due to Olympic qualification and selection commitments.
Ionuţ Alexandru Mitrea is a Romanian sprint canoeist. Mitrea is a member of the canoe and kayak team for Dynamo Bucharest Sports Club, and is coached and trained by Serban Romica.
Olivier Cauwenbergh is a Belgian sprint canoeist. Cauwenbergh is a member of Royal Canoe Club Mechelen, and thus is coached and trained by Carlos Prendes.
Laurens Pannecoucke is a Belgian sprint canoeist. Pannecoucke is a member of the canoe and kayak team for Bloso Hazewinkel Sports Club in Willebroek, and is coached and trained by Carlos Prendes.
Darryl Stewart Fitzgerald is a New Zealand sprint canoeist. Fitzgerald is a member of Poverty Bay Kayak Club, and is coached and trained by four-time Olympic kayaking champion Ian Ferguson.
Lachlan Tame is an Australian canoe sprinter. Tame teamed up with Jordan Wood, Murray Stewart and Riley Fitzsimmons in the men's K-4 500m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The team came second in their heat with a time of 1.22:662. In their semi-final they rowed quite a bit slower but still managed to come second and qualify for the final. They couldn't keep up their good form and came sixth in the final, nearly 3 seconds behind the eventual winner, Germany.
Colin Sieders is an Australian paracanoeist and former racing driver. He competed for Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.
Dylan Littlehales is an Australian paracanoeist. He competed for Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics and 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
Jordan Wood is an Australian canoeist. He competed in the men's K-2 200 metres and men's K-4 1000 metres events at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Jaime Roberts is an Australian canoeist. She qualified to represent Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics. Her team consisting of Jo Brigden-Jones, Catherine McArthur, and Shannon Reynolds made the women's K-4 final but failed to win a medal, coming 7th with a time of 1:39.797 over two seconds slower than their best time in the heats.
Jean van der Westhuyzen is an Australian sprint canoeist. He was educated at Michaelhouse, Balgowan, KwaZulu Natal.
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