Rower Sullivan receives MNZM
Olympian thanks Marlborough
Marlborough rowing sensation Joseph Sullivan says he is humbled to be made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year’s Honours list.
Sullivan and his double sculls partner, Nathan Cohen, have both been awarded the MNZM for services to rowing in the honours list announced today after winning a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics.
The other Marlborough person to be recognised in the honours list is fellow Picton man Peter Bugler, who received a Queen’s Service Medal for services to cycling tourism. Mark Solomon, a man with a long association to the Kaikoura region, has been made a knight for services to Maori and business.
Sullivan said he didn’t expect the honour.
‘‘It’s quite humbling to receive it. I just want to thank Marlborough – that’s the community that got me here. It’s not only for me, it’s for the whole region.
‘‘Picton was a great place to grow up as a kid and the support from the people there, the college and the rowing club has been amazing.’’
He has won a junior and open world championship title every year since 2007.
He was Marlborough Sportsman of the Year in 2008, 2011 and again this year and is a life member of the Picton Rowing Club.
The 25-year-old said he had not given much thought to becoming a national representative of rowing but could see it in his future.
‘‘I’ve been a long time rowing and I want to be a good ambassador for the sport, that would be really cool.
‘‘After winning the gold at the Olympics, people who are watching rowing and respect it realised how much effort we put into it. I think a lot of people appreciate what we do now.’’
He hoped his success would help inspire shorter rowers to push themselves. Standing at 1.82 metres, he is considered short for a rower.
‘‘Having kids know who you are and coming up to you, it’s good to be somebody they can look up to and strive to be like.
‘‘With me being quite short, I go to the schools and a lot of the kids are actually bigger than I am and it’s good to show them that you don’t have to be really tall to be a rower. A switch flicks in their heads when they see that they can do it, they can train hard and go to the Olympics.’’
The biggest change he would like to see within New Zealand rowing would be for people to be more aware of the range of abilities.
‘‘Shorter people can have more determination [than tall people] because of the challenges they face. They’re passionate and they’re often the guys who want it more.’’
After welcoming his parents home from Australia last week to a complete home renovation done by the community, Sullivan has returned to the North Island.
He plans to compete in the Coast to Coast in February and will then focus on training for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.