Suns say athletes worth their medal
GOLD medal-winning Commonwealth Games athlete Matt Hauser once dreamt of winning AFL flags before opting to pursue triathlon.
Hauser, who yesterday joined the Suns at Bond University for the launch of a new membership drive, was on the path to making a career out of Australian rules football with the Hervey Bay product part of the Brisbane Lions academy between the ages of 13 and 14.
But multiple injuries meant the Gold Coast-based athlete shifted his focus to the three-disciplined sport of triathlon where he has become one of the most promising emerging talents in the world.
“I made a few Queensland country teams and actually got into the Brisbane Lions academy when I was younger,” Hauser said.
“I could see my future going down that path and trying to get into the AFL.
“It didn’t eventuate, though. I got a few too many
injuries in the sport and decided to stick to running and eventually triathlon.”
Hauser is one of the newest members of the Gold Coast Suns who have offered memberships to all of the Coast
athletes who won medals at the Commonwealth Games.
His coach Dan Atkins formerly helped train some of the Lions players including triple-premiership player and Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis, who became so adept at cycling he won multiple Brisbane criterium races.
Suns ruckman Tom Nicholls said it was a creative recruitment drive by the club to invest in the athletes who helped represent Gold Coast on a global scale.
“We are a community club and they represented us so well at the Games so we wanted to return the favour and represent the Gold Coast really well,” Nicholls said.
“We want them to come out and enjoy that experience so fans might see a few of the guys out there (at Metricon Stadium).