August 21, 2024 • 41 mins
On this bonus episode, Murray is joined by Olympic Men's Kayak Cross gold medallist, kiwi Finn Butcher. Deaks and Finn talk about the moment he knew he'd won gold in Paris, the highlights of his Olympic games, the future of Kayak Cross and what's next for Finn.
Murray Deaker has been interviewing the biggest names in sport for 40 years. 'Murray Deaker’s Sporting Lives' will interview legends of sport, uncovering their stories. Full of memories, theories, and opinion. And no nonsense! 'Murray Deaker’s Sporting Lives' podcast brought to you by Gold Sport.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Gold Sport presents Murray Deeker's Sporting Lives with Callaway, the
leading manufacturer of premium golf clubs, balls and accessories worldwide.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hi Murray Deeker here, Welcome to my podcast, Murray Deeker's
Sporting Lives. During my career, I've spent forty years interviewing
some of the biggest names in sport. I'm thrilled to
bring you this podcast, talking to sporting legends and giving
you a look into their world, to hear their memories,
their stories. In some opinion too. The Paris Olympics were
(00:35):
a great event. Twenty medals. We got equal with Tokyo
but this time and outstanding ten gold medals. It's an
amazing effort from our athletes. There was one medal I
just love watching a gold medal in the men's kayak cross.
(00:56):
The Central Otago's Finn Butcher. I'm just thrilled to chat
to him today.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Gold Sport presents Murray Digger's Sporting Lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
There was something about him that made him instantly part
of New Zealand folklore. He was sort of a cross
between Fred Dagg and a Fovo straight fisherman. When he
stood on the dast to have the Olympic gold medal
placed over his head. He looked humble and proud, the
qualities that we love in our Kiwi heroes. But what
(01:30):
sealed the deal for me was when he started to
talk about the real Central Otago, not the tourist bit,
and learning to kayak on the Kowara River. He is
the butcher, Finn Butcher. Welcome.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Yeah, thank you very much, thanks for the intro.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
They tell me that you got straight off the plane
and Auckland and went up to my part of the
other side of the bridge. But you went to the
North Coke tavern. What happened?
Speaker 3 (01:58):
Yeah, Yeah. One of my friends, Therenz. He he was
the one that packed me up. I'm actually staying with
him these couple of weeks that I'm back at home,
and he just went, oh, you know, do you want
to get lunch somewhere or something, And he's, oh, we'll
just go to the tavern and have some chips and
a beer or something and celebrate. Because he's so he's
actually my physiologist, but he's also like he's my best
(02:19):
friend from UNI. So it was quite cool that he
was quite a big part of the whole campaign. And stuff,
So yeah, we just went to celebrate with him and
have a have we quiet beer, and yeah, ended up
there the whole afternoon, So it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
And the rumor has it that you didn't have to
buy one.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I haven't bought a beer since since
ten days ago, So no, it's been pretty cool. It's
one of the perks I suppose.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Great stuff. And you're even rolling your eyes a bit.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
Yeah, hopefully still got the Yeah, there's a bit there.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Hey, I wanted to know what you were thinking about
when you were at the top of the ramp waiting
for the start in that final Yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
I mean, like we've obviously been through a few rounds
before that, and like our goal was just to try
to hit the start with as much intensity and and
aggression as possible, and because we knew the start was crucial, right,
Like that was the beat that was going to sort
of make or break the race or at least, you know,
go a good way to to to winning the thing.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
So just.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I had a moment. They get you up there about
five minutes before the start, pretty early, so we're sitting
in the boats for quite a while up there and
like just looking out over the massive grandstand and the
crowd and stuff was pretty cool. So I had a
little moment just enjoying that and then try to zoom
in and and really focus on just rapping into the
start as hard as I could, And yeah, I basically
(03:47):
just do the little they do, the little intro thing
and yeah, a little introduction, throw the mon awave out there,
and then just like real, zoom in and look at
the edge of the gate and and focus and yeah,
like I say, all I wanted to do was just
headed as much as intensely as possible and go for it.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
Is that one of the ever had.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
Ah, Yeah, there were some pretty good ones actually through
the whole, through the whole. Yeah, I don't know what
the times were, but that was definitely the most crucial one,
I think, So, yeah, it was. It was wicked like
Actually I didn't realize, but I saw on a little
replay the other day that I actually let go of
(04:30):
my pedal on the second stroke, so I land. So
you have to start with your pedal to the side
of your boat. And then I land, had a right
stroke and then the left one did the left and
then it came up underneath the guy beside me boat,
so I let go of my pedal and then did
the right stroke and then grabbed it again with the
left hand. So I didn't even realize, but it was
just like, you know, like getting out there was so key,
(04:51):
and I think the other two beside me had a
pretty decent start too, but then they had a little
tussle and they just just touched and that's that was
enough for me. Get one more stroke out in front
and then yeah, and run away with it a little
bit and hopefully hold it. I was hoping to hold
it together from there.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
So did you know you were in front even midway
through the race?
Speaker 3 (05:12):
Yeah? Yeah, so you feel like so the first initial
kind of splashdown is a bit of a melee. There's
all sorts going on, and then I knew that I'd
pulled in front of the other guys, and then coming
down under the bridge to the first gate, knew I
was in the lead, and basically I was going to
you can choose the upstream, so you can choose lyft
(05:32):
or right, and I was pretty much always just went
to the upright, just a bit easier to execute, I think,
and yeah, chose that way, And as I turned around,
I noticed that the other guy, the British guy, had
split to the other side, so I knew I was
in front, and then kind of felt and breathing down
my neck the whole way down that middle section, but
luckily just made a little bit more of a gap
(05:54):
at the bottom and can do the last option by
myself as well. And yeah, just coming out of that
was pretty unreal feeling.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Most of us are never going to experience this, So
tell me what is the emotion like when you realize, Hell,
I'm winning this and I'm gonna win it.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
I was pretty it was pretty insane, like obviously when
I was in front, Like I knew that I was
in front, and I knew that I could win if
I just if I executed. But it was quite cool
because I stayed super focused and really in the in
the zone until I had exited that last upstream and yeah,
just like a huge adrenaline dump and euphoria of like, holy,
(06:32):
it's actually actually happening, And yeah, it was pretty special
and like to be able to share it with some
friends and family that were there and my coach Aaron
and some of my really really good friends from the
New Zealand team, but also from the Australian team who
I'm really close with, and they were all at the
finish line, and you know, my good friend Amy Fisher
(06:55):
was there as well, watching. She had walked over from
her from training from the other side, and man, it
was it was pretty cool. And I think, like the
thing for me is as all those people. My whole
life and whole like paddling career has just been about
all the people that have helped me, supported me, and
like the community is the best thing for me, so
to share it with them was pretty special. So yeah,
(07:16):
I'll get emotional probably if I.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
Talk about it too much, but I thought the wonderful
thing was to look at their faces. Yeah, And I
looked looked at them and I thought right back to
my past because I'm a kid from Omeca, just down
the road from you and Alex, you know, and eighty
people living in our town. But those faces are the
types of faces that were there, and it really struck
(07:38):
home to me what this means. And yeah, it's pretty honestly, Finn.
What's it going to mean to Central low Targo? This
is huge?
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Yeah, Yeah, I think they're pretty they're pretty pleased, they're
pretty proud, very brilliant. I'm going down there on Monday,
so I'm really really excited to get down there and
just the amount of messages I've had and people that
have supported me, and like we had at actually a
little celebration when I got selected in March down there,
and that was really cool even to just be part
(08:08):
of the New Zealand team and represent my community and
then on the big stage and to be able to
now come back a few months later with a piece
of gold around the neck is pretty special. So yeah,
I'll definitely spend a good few days and join it
with those people down there, because they're everything to me. Man, Like,
they're just the most supportive community you'd ever believe.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
So yeah, well let's go right back to the beginning,
because it is important to you and it's important that
we all understand it too. Tell me about beginning paddling
at the age of nine at a have a go
day on the local river. It's all I've ever read,
Local river. Yeah, tell me it's surely to hell it,
you know, putting you on the Kouara at night?
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Done the manhir care?
Speaker 2 (08:53):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, So well Dad was real into multi sport, so
he did the coaster and that kind of stuff. So
we kind of had kayaks around around the house a
little bit. And so there's actually some photos of me
when I was about three or whatever, and you know,
they used to we go down the lake for some
fashion chaps or something on a Sunday and put me
(09:16):
in the in the kayak and type his of string
to the end of it so I could like sort
of pot on my way out and then they'd just
pulled me back and didn't get too far. So it
was kind of always there. And then we had good
family friends, the Rainers, who were really into whitewater, and
they ended up I don't know how we ended up going,
but we went down to the local kind of have
(09:39):
a go day during the blossom festival and down on
the men Here Care River, and I did that with
a group of friends from school who were already kind
of and we're all sort of in the same friend
group anyway already, and like we all went down there
and just absolutely loved it and just fell in love
straight away. And there was one of the the legends
(10:01):
of the sport. Alan Hoffman was selling an old kayak
and a paddle and a spraydic or whatever, and yeah,
a dad sort of went to me like, you know,
he must have been able to tell that I was
really enjoying it, and yeah, so he was like, you know,
if you really want to do it, go and ask,
going as serge, if you can buy that boat. And yeah,
(10:22):
sure enough, that next week we went up to Wanaka
and got that boat off him, and yeah, it was
that was it.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
So I wanted to ask you about sarj.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
He clearly is somebody who played a very very big
part in your early life. Okay, yeah, so and died
of cancer recently. How much did he inspire you and
more importantly, what did you learn from him?
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Yeah, he's an absolute legiend. So he was a big
part of the kayaking community and the South Island, especially
in Central Tago. So he was based in Monica. And yeah,
just like when we were kids, he was kind of
like the one of the big drivers. Here was a
good we had a really good crew, good community and
(11:09):
he was just one of the really big drivers of it.
And you know, obviously from his nickname Sarge, so he
was he was from a military background and in the
New Zealand Army and stuff. He was he was a
tanker in the army. And yeah, I think probably calling
him in sarge is a little bit of a probably
in the army terms, a bit of an insult because
he was actually, you know, one of the he got
(11:32):
he got very very high up up the army, so man,
and he was just one of those people that would
just go out of his way to help anyone. And
he was so passionate about the sport that he would
just he would just help anyone. He just wanted to
see people enjoy it, to be honest. But from him,
(11:53):
like I think his like his values of like hard work.
You know, he just got it done. And I saw
him through his whole He was battled cancer for a
long time and you know, like the amount of stuff
that he got done when he was really struggling, and
(12:15):
you know, like he was just an absolute legend. And yeah,
I mean this this is part of his you know,
like to do that. And actually the other day his
son Nick, Nick Kaufman, he's a he's a pilot within
his YEWN and he came down and met us at
the airport. So he was at the at the North
Coote tab as well. So yeah, something about that was
(12:37):
pretty special to come back home and meet up with
Murk and pretty cool.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Gold Sport Presents Murray Dieka's sporting lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
What does she look now at the development in New
Zealand that took place, because I know when you went
to the Junior Worlds and stuff like that, but there's
nothing that I can lay my hands on which is
telling me how you got to that level to get
to the Junior world Yeah, where you did well?
Speaker 3 (13:11):
Yeah, yeah, So we basically we have secondary school championships
and national championships and as a club in Alexandra, we
had we would do a lot of fundraising and then
try to get a coaching from from overseas and usually
someone kind of in the early twenties who wanted to
sort of go and experience New Zealand and a bit
of an oe, I suppose from over there and come
(13:33):
here and coach the kids and the club. And so
we had a few people do that, and yeah, we
just really really loved paddling basically, and those kind of
things helped us. And so you'd go to the signal
schools and the nationals and then you'd end up you know,
I made the junior development team or what was it
called at the time, and go and race in Australia
(13:56):
and train and and yeah. Then it was just kind
of like a bit of a progression. And at the
same time the sport was growing and there was people
building a program and yeah, just I don't know, it's
just the group that I was worth all really into
it and training together and yeah, and then like it
(14:17):
was one of my dreams to get we get stickers
on the front of our boat that says inside out,
like the country code, and it was one of my
goals to get that sticker. And man, when I went
to Junior Worlds and had that, it was like a
big moment. And actually in Paris when I was putting
those stickers on my boat for the Games and they
had the Olympic rings on them too, it was like holy,
it's like a big circle of that. And then it
(14:40):
was yeah, a few special moments. So yeah, I mean
I did reasonably well at Junior World's, like I think
sixteenth or something, and then I was fourth or under
twenty three Worlds. So it was just a bit of
a progression. And yeah, plenty of people put a lot
of work into to get to that point.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
And at the same time because of the type of
family that you come from, which I'm told is a
real tight outfit. And your mum a school teacher at
Dunston High. You're off to a Targer university to do
a degree in industrial design for a couple of years.
But because that was interfering with your training, you checked
(15:17):
it is that when you came to Auckland pretty much.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
So, yeah, mum and dad, like mum was a school
teacher by trade, but then they.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Started they were running a restaurant.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
So they started a cafe and function center and had
lots of weddings and things, so that's what they were
doing the whole time. I grew up basically, and I
went to Tigo for a couple of years and did
that industrial design. But yeah, like you say, it got
to that point where I went, oh, do I want
to be good at paddling or finish off that? And
(15:49):
obviously Dunedin wasn't the best place for training. It was
a pretty it was pretty cold and miserable and not
much whitewater around, and so yeah, I decided to to
put that, put the brakes on that, and I actually
spent that time in that summer and o Cittie Falls
just out of rot A and and trained there for
(16:10):
the summer and then went and spent the whole season
in Europe racing and that was my first kind of
World Cup experience. And then that year the whitewater Park
here Victor Widow Done in Monaco was built. And then yeah,
after that, it was like right. I was always from
from a central at targers Up, never moving to Auckland
unless they built a white water stadium, and sure enough
(16:32):
they built once. I was like right going there, so
but you know, it was it's it's just been amazing
to have that facility because that's success what we race
on and to have exposure to that every day in
the consistent training that that gives is just yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
So much element to this too. And we'll talk about
the water rafting in more depths out of Manicau but
I or where you were flitting with Calum Gilbert and
he's a canoeist as well, and it took me back
to the great era of New Zealand golf when we
(17:12):
had Steven Elker, Michael Campbell, Moore Head all that bunch
in the Yhaddow and feeding off each other. You would
have fed off these This guy trained together, talked it
the whole time.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Yeah, for sure, And I think there's plenty of plenty
of others that come into that as well. But you know,
like I think, to get to a good level, you
need and to get from a good level to a
great level, you need people there who are pushing you
at the same time. And you know, Callum, Callum put
me to go to Tokyo, and you know, like to
(17:50):
have each other pushing each other, like if you're just
by yourself and and it's easy for you to get
selected or what sort of stuff, it's you know, you've
there's a different kind of drive when there's someone right
beside you who's also trying to take that spot. So yeah,
I put a lot down to the competition we had,
and also did a lot of training with the guy
(18:11):
Jack Dangin who never got to go to the Games,
but he actually qualified the quota spot for US in
twenty nineteen for the twenty twenty Olympics. So yeah, he
was a real good man. And like, I think the competition,
that interosquad competition is super important. And I think in
any sport, you know, you can't just be can't just
(18:31):
be won and by yourself and you're never gonna you know,
you're gonna get to the best level and.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Then there's somebody else too. I would imagine it was
hugely influential. Luca Jones.
Speaker 3 (18:42):
Yeah, yeah, she's a legendary. Yeah. Five Olympic Games Absolute
Weapon silver medal and rio. So yeah, she you know,
like her her medal and Rio really put Canuslam and
New Zealand on the map and helped us get a
lot more support and thing and that kind of stuff.
And and like I said before about how the program
(19:04):
was growing and things were getting kind of put in place,
that put a massive acceleration onto that and and and
helped us kind of build a program. And I was
probably at the age where that was really influential for
me because then you know, we got exposed to some
funding from High Performance Sport in New Zealand and kind
(19:25):
of into that bit more coaching and that kind of stuff,
and it really made a big difference. And but even
like just personally like man to have her in the
team and and be able to learn off her and
and and watch her at Pinnacle events and the way
she can perform and prepare and and she's an absolute legend.
(19:46):
And yeah, she's she's going to be messed for sure
if she if she if she calls it.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
But she might not be even if. Clearly the sport
is growing, Yeah, clearly it's going to grow even more
because of that gold thing you've got around your neck,
hopefully for the kids all around the country. What we
wanted to do this and that was one thing I
was wondering, who is going to show them how to
do it? Well, Luca Jones is right in the box
seat there for sure.
Speaker 3 (20:13):
Yeah, so I think she's going to go and live
in tod On her she's from She's so she'll be
back there. And yeah, I mean she's been a massive
influence on the sport and I think she'll be perfect
person to begining some more people doing it.
Speaker 2 (20:28):
So how good is that thing out at Manukau on
a world basis?
Speaker 3 (20:33):
It's good, It's really good. Yeah, that's basically like they're
all different, so all the stadiums that built a different
and the river flows differently and that kind of stuff.
But that's world class, Like we could have World Cups,
World Champs, we could hold the Olympic Games here, like
it's it's one of you know, the modern, good, great courses.
So yeah, it's game changer for us to be able
(20:56):
to paddle on that every every day. And yeah, it
makes a huge diference. We definitely wouldn't be as good
as it would as we are now if we if
we couldn't paddle on that, because you know, like it's
it's all very well. You can paddle on natural rivers
and that kind of stuff, and which is the purity
of our sport, Like that's why we all started because
we love doing that. But we race on all these
(21:18):
artificial whitewater stadiums and to be able to train on
one every day is you know, it's crucial. So yeah,
pretty cool that we have that.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
The other bit is, you know when you came in,
you weren't as big as I expect you did to be,
and you don't have the huge shoulders that Lisa has.
For example, Carrington. You know you look at those shoulders, man,
that is it. So tell me what do you do
for your training besides paddling.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
I will be in the gym like three or four
days a week, and to be fair, I think I
probably faded away a little bit in the last couple
of weeks. After the race, but even in the preparation
for the race, we wouldn't We didn't go into the
gym too much, just mostly just paddling and tapering off.
So but yeah, we worked a lot this year and
(22:09):
off season previously on on you know, strength and power
and trying to get those like basically the starts, you know,
like and that Kie cross the start like you says
we talked about four is so important. And yeah, so
a lot of gym work, a little bit of running.
I'm not a massive running fan, but we did a
little bit in the off season, and then yeah, just
(22:31):
paddling a lot, and you know, we'd probably get up
to on the big weeks, like twenty two hours of
training total, so a fear bed. And then obviously there's
a lot of other stuff that goes on around that.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
So who advises you about the fitness stuff in the
gym all that stuff and the nutrition. Who were the people?
Speaker 3 (22:54):
So I've got like a good support team from from
a high performance sport New Zealand. So I've got a
my physiologist Lorenzo, who actually was the one that took
me to the Northcot tavern the other day, so he
he was my physiologist, so he helped my coach Aaron
(23:16):
write the training program and all the periodization and things
like that. And then I've got a strength and conditioner Morgan,
so she basically runs the gym side of things. So
those three so coach, physiologists, and and c all work
quite closely together around how the whole training plan all works.
(23:39):
And then there's other people like Crystal my nutritionists from
HPCs as well, and yeah psychologists Kylie and loads of people.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
That have supplied by High Performance New Zealand.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
Yeah correct, yeah, yeah, so they all have they have
like providers that they contract in and use, and like
most of them are based up at the Millennium Institute
up on the Shore and or down in Cambridge at
the Villagerome there. So yeah, like that's kind of what
we started getting exposed to when Luka Wan or a
(24:14):
Silver so that sort of stuff, and it takes a
while to build relationships and how they work and all
that kind of stuff. So they've been massively influential for
me to kind of be optimize all those other areas
of training and being an athlete that you know, you
might not get otherwise.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
It sounds like terrific support yeah, and I get a
bit sick of people bitching and moaning about New Zealand
and we don't know what we're doing, because I read
in this that although you gave away a targer university
to get to a next level, you were given a
prime Minister's scholarship to do the degree that you wanted
(24:54):
to do, which, as it's kind of turnout, couldn't have
been better. Sport and recreation, Am I right?
Speaker 3 (24:59):
Correct? Yeah? Yeah, sport and exercise. So yeah, like another
so you set up for and a part of you know,
the view at high performance sport and within you know
sport is that it's really important to be doing something
outside of it as well to then you know, either
set yourself up for a career past sport or even
(25:21):
just have something outside of only training that you can
focus on when it's not when you're not training, because
you know, if something in your sporting career, if it's
going really well or if it's going bad like it's,
you've got those big fluctuations, and if you've got other
things to focus on as well, you can take your
mind off it and and do that kind of stuff.
So yeah, I'm really grateful that we you know, we
(25:45):
can get scholarships to to go and study or or
go and internship. They have an internship program as well
with some different companies which I haven't been a part of,
but I know other athletes have, and you know, stuff
like that that makes a big difference in your career
and then also past after sport as well. So yeah,
that's pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (26:03):
Yeah too, right, Yeah, and you've got the degree now,
you capt.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Yeah, yeah, got that. So I finished in twenty.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
When he ended up, was there a Bacheler of business
studies or something?
Speaker 3 (26:11):
Ye, a Batchelor of Sport and Exercise. Yeah, So I
think i'll probably I'll probably look at doing another like
a bit more study and because I'm really interested in
like engineering and the design stuff kind of what I
started at Otago. So yeah, like you know, like the
America's Couple, the technology and the around the boats and
that and all that stuff really fizzes me up. So
(26:33):
I love to go and do something like that. So
I think a bit more engineering and that kind of stuff.
But I'll just have to figure out how it's going
to work around around training, because that's the biggest commitment,
the biggest important thing to me.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
So yeah, well, don't go past Russell Coots. He's got
a big plot of land just at the top of
a mcay. He owns half the Crown Range. He's got
his home golf course there, and he's a good rooster. Yeah,
perfect ideal boy.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Gold Sports presents Murray Digger's sporting lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
In twenty twenty one, you were the silver middleist and
the kayak cross at the World Championships, beaten by Joe Clark.
Now this man has won three World Championships, yep. And
he was there side you as you go down the
huot at the final and he's you know, is he
the benchmark?
Speaker 3 (27:29):
Yeah, for sure, for sure. He's been the best in
the world for basically since twenty twenty one. So he
won that World's and then the next two after that,
and you know, some people say, oh, it's quite unpredictable,
there's a bit of luck in it, but it's like
he was what he's been winning all the time. So yeah,
so it was quite cool to be in the final
with him, and like we talked, I'm good friends with
(27:51):
them as well. I did a lot of training with
them last year. We had the World Champs in London,
so did a lot of training throughout the year because
that's where he was based. And yeah, it was It's
quite cool. And he's like he's basically like physically he's
pretty gifted. He's super powerful and really really explosive and
for kite cross it fits him perfectly. So to kind of,
(28:13):
I guess beat him at his own game a little
bit in the in the cross and get out in
front of the start was was pretty cool. And did
you plan to beat him? Yeah, but like we we
obviously knew that the starts are important and uh and
that kind of thing. And he he actually he works
(28:33):
with Luca's old coach now so so Campbell he used
to coach Lucas now he's moved. He's a British guy.
He moved back to the UK and started coaching Joe,
And yeah, like we know that he he Joe actually
he quite likes to to fight during the races, so
we knew that, you know, if we get beside him,
he'd probably start wanting to have a little well not
(28:55):
a tussle, but you know, just a bit of argie BARGI. Yeah,
sometimes can't help himself. So it actually probably paid off
for me because there was someone in between us and
they ended up having a little scuffle and just giving
me enough space. But yeah, I think, yeah, he basically
like I would have expected him and probably going into
the final him to be leading off the first, like
(29:19):
out of the start, and our kind of goal was
basically to do our best to stay as close to
him as possible, and it probably would we would probably
would have split the course anyway, So I'd go to
an opposite upstream and then try to stay with him
through the middle section and then attack him in the
last up and by that time, hopefully you've got a
kind of middle locked away, you know, you're not going
(29:39):
to drop out of the top three, and then yeah,
try to take him for first. But yeah, it turned
out the other way, which is pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
So in looking back to the Olympics, you know, what
are your most prominent memories.
Speaker 3 (29:54):
Well, I mean, apart from the like finishing the final
and and winning this thing and standing on the podium
and watching the flag get raised and and and you know,
singing the national anthem, that was pretty cool, But I think,
you know, I had a good few moments with my
coach and when we're just prior to the racing or
(30:16):
even even the sylum at the start and we're standing
at the start line just doing our final kind of
walk through and just have a moment to ourselves and
go look at that. That's pretty epic, And like, the
crowd was amazing and it was just cool to be there,
and especially with Aaron, my coach, who has actually been
(30:36):
part of my my journey for a long long time.
He didn't coach me for a few few years in
the middle, but he came back in just at the
end of last year, so that was pretty special. And yeah,
I mean the whole thing was an epic experience. It
was pretty pretty bloody cool. But I think the big
(30:57):
moments obviously the opening ceremony and then the closing ceremony
as well.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
So you carried the flag and.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
I carried the flag as well beside Lisa. It was
pretty special. So yeah, walking into I think it was
about eighty thousand people and Stard de France was carrying
the Kiwi flag is pretty insane. So definitely moments I'll
never forget. For sure.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
We're sort of dodge talking about your coach and I
think we should talk.
Speaker 3 (31:23):
Yeah, he deserves some time.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Yeah, Aaron.
Speaker 3 (31:25):
Who Aaron Osborne, Right, Yeah, from Hawk's Bay originally. Yeah, so,
oh he's a good man. He yeah, he he Actually,
as I spoke earlier about our program sort of getting
built and stuff, he was actually a massive part of
building the whole program. So when we were when not him,
(31:46):
but my kind of group was all in the under
twenty three or junior categories, he was kind of building
a program for us to to then progress because before that,
like Luca and Mike Dawson kind of on their own,
like there was nothing really around them to help them
get better. They were just they were just battling away
by themselves, and they got they got really good just
(32:09):
through their own willpower of you know, finding bits and
pieces here and there and traveling around Europe, and and
Aaron kind of helped build build something. And then he
in twenty eighteen moved on to a role at Canoe
Sprint so flatwooter kayaking and like a project managing kind
(32:34):
of role, so not coaching directly, but sort of managing
project with clubs and stuff. And then yeah, just the
end of last year, I wanted a bit of a
change and the setup that I had and we've always
been good mates, and I've always kind of looked at
him for some advice and yeah, he just he was
(32:55):
more than happy to help me out. And my partner
Courtney was like, why don't you just he helped me
started writing my training programs and stuff. She was like,
why don't you just ask him to go to Australia
with you for the Olympic selection Like, I'm sure he'll
be happy to go with you. And so, yeah, he
came to Ozzie was he was more than happy to
come over with me, and yeah, once sort of selections
(33:15):
were done, was, yeah, he was kind of he was
kind of hooked hooked back in. I roped him back in.
So man, it was pretty cool to bring him over
and have him there with me because I think deep down,
like the only reason he was there or with me
is because all like he just wanted to help and
he just wanted to see me do well. And and
(33:39):
you know, like he wasn't there because he wanted to
go to the Olympics. He's been before and you know,
not as a coach, and and you know, he was
just there because he wanted to help me. And like
the trust that that builds that someone who's right in
your corner and just there because all he cares about
is helping you. That's huge, right, Like when things aren't
(34:00):
going well or you know, before big events, it's natural
for your brain to kind of like go to random
places and start doubting yourself and doubting your training and
that kind of stuff. But I always had him in
my corner. Who who was just there for me and
that was the only reason. So that was pretty cool.
And yeah, we had a good few moments at the
(34:22):
Games and then man like he was like the first
person to just jump on me at the end and yeah,
give me a big hug after. I wont this so
pretty cool? He's a good man.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
Are the money races in Europe?
Speaker 3 (34:36):
Not really? No, so the World Cup series.
Speaker 2 (34:38):
But what's going to happen surely is that that is
going to happen?
Speaker 3 (34:42):
Well, I think so. Yeah. I think the Kaya Cross
is just perfectly built for it.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
People loved it.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
Yeah, yeah, it was a massive success.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
And often interrupt But the other thing I understand is
that the Cross is going to take over now from
the sprints, the flatwater sprints.
Speaker 3 (35:00):
Yeah, so what happened was they moved they took away
the two hundred meter, which is a pretty exciting event.
And then yeah, they sort of took some quota ethnic
quota space because at the Olympics you can only have
a certain amount of people, so they.
Speaker 2 (35:17):
See this as being a way of appealing to younger people.
Speaker 3 (35:21):
I think, so yeah, and I'm not.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
Saying it's k wrestling, but it can get pretty pretty people.
Speaker 3 (35:27):
Yeah, and it like I think it was a massive
success at the Games, and which is awesome for our sport,
and like it's a perfect package to market.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
To think, so some entrepreneur is going to get into
this very quickly.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yeah, yeah, so and even like if it's just a
kaya cross series or whatever that but you know, like
crowds love it if it wasn't. You know. I just
always think like in the evening, you've got a bit
of a DJ, you know, people are having a good time,
having some beers and stuff and watching and it's bloody exciting.
And even if it's not, you know, you've got your
(36:04):
favorite athlete who any races one heat and then goes
through the next round. You wait for a while, but
every round is exciting and it's awesome to watch. So yeah,
at the moment, I think if you win the overall
World Cup series, so it's five races. If you win
the overall thing, you get two and a half thousand euros,
which is, you know, less than five grand, which is
(36:26):
probably not even going to cover your accommodation for those
five races. So there's not a lot of cash in there.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
But I would think that with that gold medal coming
into New Zealand, that that's been worth preaty for you.
Speaker 3 (36:39):
Yeah hopefully. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
So yeah, going rate for those it was, but you know,
people were getting fifty thousand and some sports.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
I thought, yeah, So what happens now is there's like
a We had a thing called PIGS back in the day,
so that was I don't know how much, but you
got basically like a grant for the following year. So
now we have a thing called TAPS, which is like
tiered Athlete Performance Support and basically if you at a level,
(37:08):
you go on to a basic training grant, which is
about thirty two thousand dollars I think. So that's kind
of what they think is like enough to sort of
like live on and just be able to train, and
then basically if you're top eight at a pinnacle event,
so the world Champs or the Olympics, it goes tiered
up to first place. So I'm not too sure what
(37:30):
that looks like for me at the moment, but hopefully
it means I'll get some good support for the next
four years and try to, yeah, go to LA and
defend it.
Speaker 2 (37:40):
Do you have personal sponsors.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
I've got one long time sponsor, Fusion five Business Solutions,
so they've they've supported me for a long, long long time.
Then they're awesome and they were really really stoked to
see that I came away with this. They also support
Lewis Kleber and Erica a few with her, so two swimmers.
(38:02):
So yeah, they've been really cool. So I'm looking forward
to going and catching up with them. Thrilled with you,
Yeah hopefully. So, yeah that's cool, but yeah hopefully. I
mean even this morning, like I've been on a bit
of a media tour, so been all around the radio
stations and on breakfast TV and stuff like that. So man,
it's like I would have never even dreamed of it
(38:24):
as a kid, that yeah, I'd be able to go
into the Olympics or bring one of these back, and yeah,
be able to be going on New Zealand media and yeah,
it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (38:34):
The fascination to me is simple, that'll continue as long
as you and I'm sure you're going to do this
stay grounded in your Central Otago values that your mum
and dad have tort you. Yeah, because that's what that's
what the whole thing is about. I've seen guys and
you were aware. I've been doing this sort of job
for well more, probably more years than anyone else, and
(38:56):
some of them lose their plot. Yeah, you know, they
get too big for their boots. I was going to
use rude to about where the head would go, but
the guts of it, quite simply is you are very natural,
You're passionate about what you do, and you want to
do more. Yeah, for sure, And clearly you know you're
(39:18):
into the next four year cycle once you've had a
good spell from this. Yeah, is that right?
Speaker 3 (39:22):
Yeah, that's for sure. Yeah, Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm just yeah,
like I say, like, I just love love paddling, and
that community behind me is the biggest thing, and I
think they've they've instilled some pretty pretty good values. And
growing up in Central it was just like the place
for it. Man, it's I love it so much and
(39:42):
those people like my mum and dad and Gordy Rainer
and Sarge like Cauldn't get much better mentals than that.
So yeah, I'm pretty stoked.
Speaker 2 (39:52):
Well I'm stoked took the time to come in and
have a yarn to me today. It was important. I
looked at everybody who was involved in the Olympics, and
you were someone I didn't know a lot about. And
I thought I had one lock and I thought, I
know that guy. I know where he's from. So congratulations
on the medal.
Speaker 3 (40:13):
Fantastic, Thank you very much. Yeah, it's been a pleasure.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Well that was the gold medalist Finn Butcher.
Speaker 3 (40:27):
There.
Speaker 2 (40:29):
It was another episode of Murray Deeca's Sporting Lives, brought
to you by Callaway. They are the balls to use,
no question about that. Now. If you enjoyed this episode,
please follow the podcast on iHeartRadio or wherever you get
your podcasts. We'll be back next month on Murray Deeka's
(40:49):
Sporting Lives.
Gold Sport presents Murray Deeker's Sporting Lives with Callaway, the
leading manufacturer of premium golf clubs, balls and accessories worldwide.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hi Murray Deeker here, Welcome to my podcast, Murray Deeker's
Sporting Lives. During my career, I've spent forty years interviewing
some of the biggest names in sport. I'm thrilled to
bring you this podcast, talking to sporting legends and giving
you a look into their world, to hear their memories,
their stories. In some opinion too. The Paris Olympics were
(00:35):
a great event. Twenty medals. We got equal with Tokyo
but this time and outstanding ten gold medals. It's an
amazing effort from our athletes. There was one medal I
just love watching a gold medal in the men's kayak cross.
(00:56):
The Central Otago's Finn Butcher. I'm just thrilled to chat
to him today.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Gold Sport presents Murray Digger's Sporting Lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
There was something about him that made him instantly part
of New Zealand folklore. He was sort of a cross
between Fred Dagg and a Fovo straight fisherman. When he
stood on the dast to have the Olympic gold medal
placed over his head. He looked humble and proud, the
qualities that we love in our Kiwi heroes. But what
(01:30):
sealed the deal for me was when he started to
talk about the real Central Otago, not the tourist bit,
and learning to kayak on the Kowara River. He is
the butcher, Finn Butcher. Welcome.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Yeah, thank you very much, thanks for the intro.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
They tell me that you got straight off the plane
and Auckland and went up to my part of the
other side of the bridge. But you went to the
North Coke tavern. What happened?
Speaker 3 (01:58):
Yeah, Yeah. One of my friends, Therenz. He he was
the one that packed me up. I'm actually staying with
him these couple of weeks that I'm back at home,
and he just went, oh, you know, do you want
to get lunch somewhere or something, And he's, oh, we'll
just go to the tavern and have some chips and
a beer or something and celebrate. Because he's so he's
actually my physiologist, but he's also like he's my best
(02:19):
friend from UNI. So it was quite cool that he
was quite a big part of the whole campaign. And stuff,
So yeah, we just went to celebrate with him and
have a have we quiet beer, and yeah, ended up
there the whole afternoon, So it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
And the rumor has it that you didn't have to
buy one.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I haven't bought a beer since since
ten days ago, So no, it's been pretty cool. It's
one of the perks I suppose.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Great stuff. And you're even rolling your eyes a bit.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
Yeah, hopefully still got the Yeah, there's a bit there.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Hey, I wanted to know what you were thinking about
when you were at the top of the ramp waiting
for the start in that final Yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
I mean, like we've obviously been through a few rounds
before that, and like our goal was just to try
to hit the start with as much intensity and and
aggression as possible, and because we knew the start was crucial, right,
Like that was the beat that was going to sort
of make or break the race or at least, you know,
go a good way to to to winning the thing.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
So just.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I had a moment. They get you up there about
five minutes before the start, pretty early, so we're sitting
in the boats for quite a while up there and
like just looking out over the massive grandstand and the
crowd and stuff was pretty cool. So I had a
little moment just enjoying that and then try to zoom
in and and really focus on just rapping into the
start as hard as I could, And yeah, I basically
(03:47):
just do the little they do, the little intro thing
and yeah, a little introduction, throw the mon awave out there,
and then just like real, zoom in and look at
the edge of the gate and and focus and yeah,
like I say, all I wanted to do was just
headed as much as intensely as possible and go for it.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
Is that one of the ever had.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
Ah, Yeah, there were some pretty good ones actually through
the whole, through the whole. Yeah, I don't know what
the times were, but that was definitely the most crucial one,
I think, So, yeah, it was. It was wicked like
Actually I didn't realize, but I saw on a little
replay the other day that I actually let go of
(04:30):
my pedal on the second stroke, so I land. So
you have to start with your pedal to the side
of your boat. And then I land, had a right
stroke and then the left one did the left and
then it came up underneath the guy beside me boat,
so I let go of my pedal and then did
the right stroke and then grabbed it again with the
left hand. So I didn't even realize, but it was
just like, you know, like getting out there was so key,
(04:51):
and I think the other two beside me had a
pretty decent start too, but then they had a little
tussle and they just just touched and that's that was
enough for me. Get one more stroke out in front
and then yeah, and run away with it a little
bit and hopefully hold it. I was hoping to hold
it together from there.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
So did you know you were in front even midway
through the race?
Speaker 3 (05:12):
Yeah? Yeah, so you feel like so the first initial
kind of splashdown is a bit of a melee. There's
all sorts going on, and then I knew that I'd
pulled in front of the other guys, and then coming
down under the bridge to the first gate, knew I
was in the lead, and basically I was going to
you can choose the upstream, so you can choose lyft
(05:32):
or right, and I was pretty much always just went
to the upright, just a bit easier to execute, I think,
and yeah, chose that way, And as I turned around,
I noticed that the other guy, the British guy, had
split to the other side, so I knew I was
in front, and then kind of felt and breathing down
my neck the whole way down that middle section, but
luckily just made a little bit more of a gap
(05:54):
at the bottom and can do the last option by
myself as well. And yeah, just coming out of that
was pretty unreal feeling.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Most of us are never going to experience this, So
tell me what is the emotion like when you realize, Hell,
I'm winning this and I'm gonna win it.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
I was pretty it was pretty insane, like obviously when
I was in front, Like I knew that I was
in front, and I knew that I could win if
I just if I executed. But it was quite cool
because I stayed super focused and really in the in
the zone until I had exited that last upstream and yeah,
just like a huge adrenaline dump and euphoria of like, holy,
(06:32):
it's actually actually happening, And yeah, it was pretty special
and like to be able to share it with some
friends and family that were there and my coach Aaron
and some of my really really good friends from the
New Zealand team, but also from the Australian team who
I'm really close with, and they were all at the
finish line, and you know, my good friend Amy Fisher
(06:55):
was there as well, watching. She had walked over from
her from training from the other side, and man, it
was it was pretty cool. And I think, like the
thing for me is as all those people. My whole
life and whole like paddling career has just been about
all the people that have helped me, supported me, and
like the community is the best thing for me, so
to share it with them was pretty special. So yeah,
(07:16):
I'll get emotional probably if I.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
Talk about it too much, but I thought the wonderful
thing was to look at their faces. Yeah, And I
looked looked at them and I thought right back to
my past because I'm a kid from Omeca, just down
the road from you and Alex, you know, and eighty
people living in our town. But those faces are the
types of faces that were there, and it really struck
(07:38):
home to me what this means. And yeah, it's pretty honestly, Finn.
What's it going to mean to Central low Targo? This
is huge?
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Yeah, Yeah, I think they're pretty they're pretty pleased, they're
pretty proud, very brilliant. I'm going down there on Monday,
so I'm really really excited to get down there and
just the amount of messages I've had and people that
have supported me, and like we had at actually a
little celebration when I got selected in March down there,
and that was really cool even to just be part
(08:08):
of the New Zealand team and represent my community and
then on the big stage and to be able to
now come back a few months later with a piece
of gold around the neck is pretty special. So yeah,
I'll definitely spend a good few days and join it
with those people down there, because they're everything to me. Man, Like,
they're just the most supportive community you'd ever believe.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
So yeah, well let's go right back to the beginning,
because it is important to you and it's important that
we all understand it too. Tell me about beginning paddling
at the age of nine at a have a go
day on the local river. It's all I've ever read,
Local river. Yeah, tell me it's surely to hell it,
you know, putting you on the Kouara at night?
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Done the manhir care?
Speaker 2 (08:53):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, So well Dad was real into multi sport, so
he did the coaster and that kind of stuff. So
we kind of had kayaks around around the house a
little bit. And so there's actually some photos of me
when I was about three or whatever, and you know,
they used to we go down the lake for some
fashion chaps or something on a Sunday and put me
(09:16):
in the in the kayak and type his of string
to the end of it so I could like sort
of pot on my way out and then they'd just
pulled me back and didn't get too far. So it
was kind of always there. And then we had good
family friends, the Rainers, who were really into whitewater, and
they ended up I don't know how we ended up going,
but we went down to the local kind of have
(09:39):
a go day during the blossom festival and down on
the men Here Care River, and I did that with
a group of friends from school who were already kind
of and we're all sort of in the same friend
group anyway already, and like we all went down there
and just absolutely loved it and just fell in love
straight away. And there was one of the the legends
(10:01):
of the sport. Alan Hoffman was selling an old kayak
and a paddle and a spraydic or whatever, and yeah,
a dad sort of went to me like, you know,
he must have been able to tell that I was
really enjoying it, and yeah, so he was like, you know,
if you really want to do it, go and ask,
going as serge, if you can buy that boat. And yeah,
(10:22):
sure enough, that next week we went up to Wanaka
and got that boat off him, and yeah, it was
that was it.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
So I wanted to ask you about sarj.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
He clearly is somebody who played a very very big
part in your early life. Okay, yeah, so and died
of cancer recently. How much did he inspire you and
more importantly, what did you learn from him?
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Yeah, he's an absolute legiend. So he was a big
part of the kayaking community and the South Island, especially
in Central Tago. So he was based in Monica. And yeah,
just like when we were kids, he was kind of
like the one of the big drivers. Here was a
good we had a really good crew, good community and
(11:09):
he was just one of the really big drivers of it.
And you know, obviously from his nickname Sarge, so he
was he was from a military background and in the
New Zealand Army and stuff. He was he was a
tanker in the army. And yeah, I think probably calling
him in sarge is a little bit of a probably
in the army terms, a bit of an insult because
he was actually, you know, one of the he got
(11:32):
he got very very high up up the army, so man,
and he was just one of those people that would
just go out of his way to help anyone. And
he was so passionate about the sport that he would
just he would just help anyone. He just wanted to
see people enjoy it, to be honest. But from him,
(11:53):
like I think his like his values of like hard work.
You know, he just got it done. And I saw
him through his whole He was battled cancer for a
long time and you know, like the amount of stuff
that he got done when he was really struggling, and
(12:15):
you know, like he was just an absolute legend. And yeah,
I mean this this is part of his you know,
like to do that. And actually the other day his
son Nick, Nick Kaufman, he's a he's a pilot within
his YEWN and he came down and met us at
the airport. So he was at the at the North
Coote tab as well. So yeah, something about that was
(12:37):
pretty special to come back home and meet up with
Murk and pretty cool.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Gold Sport Presents Murray Dieka's sporting lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
What does she look now at the development in New
Zealand that took place, because I know when you went
to the Junior Worlds and stuff like that, but there's
nothing that I can lay my hands on which is
telling me how you got to that level to get
to the Junior world Yeah, where you did well?
Speaker 3 (13:11):
Yeah, yeah, So we basically we have secondary school championships
and national championships and as a club in Alexandra, we
had we would do a lot of fundraising and then
try to get a coaching from from overseas and usually
someone kind of in the early twenties who wanted to
sort of go and experience New Zealand and a bit
of an oe, I suppose from over there and come
(13:33):
here and coach the kids and the club. And so
we had a few people do that, and yeah, we
just really really loved paddling basically, and those kind of
things helped us. And so you'd go to the signal
schools and the nationals and then you'd end up you know,
I made the junior development team or what was it
called at the time, and go and race in Australia
(13:56):
and train and and yeah. Then it was just kind
of like a bit of a progression. And at the
same time the sport was growing and there was people
building a program and yeah, just I don't know, it's
just the group that I was worth all really into
it and training together and yeah, and then like it
(14:17):
was one of my dreams to get we get stickers
on the front of our boat that says inside out,
like the country code, and it was one of my
goals to get that sticker. And man, when I went
to Junior Worlds and had that, it was like a
big moment. And actually in Paris when I was putting
those stickers on my boat for the Games and they
had the Olympic rings on them too, it was like holy,
it's like a big circle of that. And then it
(14:40):
was yeah, a few special moments. So yeah, I mean
I did reasonably well at Junior World's, like I think
sixteenth or something, and then I was fourth or under
twenty three Worlds. So it was just a bit of
a progression. And yeah, plenty of people put a lot
of work into to get to that point.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
And at the same time because of the type of
family that you come from, which I'm told is a
real tight outfit. And your mum a school teacher at
Dunston High. You're off to a Targer university to do
a degree in industrial design for a couple of years.
But because that was interfering with your training, you checked
(15:17):
it is that when you came to Auckland pretty much.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
So, yeah, mum and dad, like mum was a school
teacher by trade, but then they.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Started they were running a restaurant.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
So they started a cafe and function center and had
lots of weddings and things, so that's what they were
doing the whole time. I grew up basically, and I
went to Tigo for a couple of years and did
that industrial design. But yeah, like you say, it got
to that point where I went, oh, do I want
to be good at paddling or finish off that? And
(15:49):
obviously Dunedin wasn't the best place for training. It was
a pretty it was pretty cold and miserable and not
much whitewater around, and so yeah, I decided to to
put that, put the brakes on that, and I actually
spent that time in that summer and o Cittie Falls
just out of rot A and and trained there for
(16:10):
the summer and then went and spent the whole season
in Europe racing and that was my first kind of
World Cup experience. And then that year the whitewater Park
here Victor Widow Done in Monaco was built. And then yeah,
after that, it was like right. I was always from
from a central at targers Up, never moving to Auckland
unless they built a white water stadium, and sure enough
(16:32):
they built once. I was like right going there, so
but you know, it was it's it's just been amazing
to have that facility because that's success what we race
on and to have exposure to that every day in
the consistent training that that gives is just yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
So much element to this too. And we'll talk about
the water rafting in more depths out of Manicau but
I or where you were flitting with Calum Gilbert and
he's a canoeist as well, and it took me back
to the great era of New Zealand golf when we
(17:12):
had Steven Elker, Michael Campbell, Moore Head all that bunch
in the Yhaddow and feeding off each other. You would
have fed off these This guy trained together, talked it
the whole time.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Yeah, for sure, And I think there's plenty of plenty
of others that come into that as well. But you know,
like I think, to get to a good level, you
need and to get from a good level to a
great level, you need people there who are pushing you
at the same time. And you know, Callum, Callum put
me to go to Tokyo, and you know, like to
(17:50):
have each other pushing each other, like if you're just
by yourself and and it's easy for you to get
selected or what sort of stuff, it's you know, you've
there's a different kind of drive when there's someone right
beside you who's also trying to take that spot. So yeah,
I put a lot down to the competition we had,
and also did a lot of training with the guy
(18:11):
Jack Dangin who never got to go to the Games,
but he actually qualified the quota spot for US in
twenty nineteen for the twenty twenty Olympics. So yeah, he
was a real good man. And like, I think the competition,
that interosquad competition is super important. And I think in
any sport, you know, you can't just be can't just
(18:31):
be won and by yourself and you're never gonna you know,
you're gonna get to the best level and.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Then there's somebody else too. I would imagine it was
hugely influential. Luca Jones.
Speaker 3 (18:42):
Yeah, yeah, she's a legendary. Yeah. Five Olympic Games Absolute
Weapon silver medal and rio. So yeah, she you know,
like her her medal and Rio really put Canuslam and
New Zealand on the map and helped us get a
lot more support and thing and that kind of stuff.
And and like I said before about how the program
(19:04):
was growing and things were getting kind of put in place,
that put a massive acceleration onto that and and and
helped us kind of build a program. And I was
probably at the age where that was really influential for
me because then you know, we got exposed to some
funding from High Performance Sport in New Zealand and kind
(19:25):
of into that bit more coaching and that kind of stuff,
and it really made a big difference. And but even
like just personally like man to have her in the
team and and be able to learn off her and
and and watch her at Pinnacle events and the way
she can perform and prepare and and she's an absolute legend.
(19:46):
And yeah, she's she's going to be messed for sure
if she if she if she calls it.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
But she might not be even if. Clearly the sport
is growing, Yeah, clearly it's going to grow even more
because of that gold thing you've got around your neck,
hopefully for the kids all around the country. What we
wanted to do this and that was one thing I
was wondering, who is going to show them how to
do it? Well, Luca Jones is right in the box
seat there for sure.
Speaker 3 (20:13):
Yeah, so I think she's going to go and live
in tod On her she's from She's so she'll be
back there. And yeah, I mean she's been a massive
influence on the sport and I think she'll be perfect
person to begining some more people doing it.
Speaker 2 (20:28):
So how good is that thing out at Manukau on
a world basis?
Speaker 3 (20:33):
It's good, It's really good. Yeah, that's basically like they're
all different, so all the stadiums that built a different
and the river flows differently and that kind of stuff.
But that's world class, Like we could have World Cups,
World Champs, we could hold the Olympic Games here, like
it's it's one of you know, the modern, good, great courses.
So yeah, it's game changer for us to be able
(20:56):
to paddle on that every every day. And yeah, it
makes a huge diference. We definitely wouldn't be as good
as it would as we are now if we if
we couldn't paddle on that, because you know, like it's
it's all very well. You can paddle on natural rivers
and that kind of stuff, and which is the purity
of our sport, Like that's why we all started because
we love doing that. But we race on all these
(21:18):
artificial whitewater stadiums and to be able to train on
one every day is you know, it's crucial. So yeah,
pretty cool that we have that.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
The other bit is, you know when you came in,
you weren't as big as I expect you did to be,
and you don't have the huge shoulders that Lisa has.
For example, Carrington. You know you look at those shoulders, man,
that is it. So tell me what do you do
for your training besides paddling.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
I will be in the gym like three or four
days a week, and to be fair, I think I
probably faded away a little bit in the last couple
of weeks. After the race, but even in the preparation
for the race, we wouldn't We didn't go into the
gym too much, just mostly just paddling and tapering off.
So but yeah, we worked a lot this year and
(22:09):
off season previously on on you know, strength and power
and trying to get those like basically the starts, you know,
like and that Kie cross the start like you says
we talked about four is so important. And yeah, so
a lot of gym work, a little bit of running.
I'm not a massive running fan, but we did a
little bit in the off season, and then yeah, just
(22:31):
paddling a lot, and you know, we'd probably get up
to on the big weeks, like twenty two hours of
training total, so a fear bed. And then obviously there's
a lot of other stuff that goes on around that.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
So who advises you about the fitness stuff in the
gym all that stuff and the nutrition. Who were the people?
Speaker 3 (22:54):
So I've got like a good support team from from
a high performance sport New Zealand. So I've got a
my physiologist Lorenzo, who actually was the one that took
me to the Northcot tavern the other day, so he
he was my physiologist, so he helped my coach Aaron
(23:16):
write the training program and all the periodization and things
like that. And then I've got a strength and conditioner Morgan,
so she basically runs the gym side of things. So
those three so coach, physiologists, and and c all work
quite closely together around how the whole training plan all works.
(23:39):
And then there's other people like Crystal my nutritionists from
HPCs as well, and yeah psychologists Kylie and loads of people.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
That have supplied by High Performance New Zealand.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
Yeah correct, yeah, yeah, so they all have they have
like providers that they contract in and use, and like
most of them are based up at the Millennium Institute
up on the Shore and or down in Cambridge at
the Villagerome there. So yeah, like that's kind of what
we started getting exposed to when Luka Wan or a
(24:14):
Silver so that sort of stuff, and it takes a
while to build relationships and how they work and all
that kind of stuff. So they've been massively influential for
me to kind of be optimize all those other areas
of training and being an athlete that you know, you
might not get otherwise.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
It sounds like terrific support yeah, and I get a
bit sick of people bitching and moaning about New Zealand
and we don't know what we're doing, because I read
in this that although you gave away a targer university
to get to a next level, you were given a
prime Minister's scholarship to do the degree that you wanted
(24:54):
to do, which, as it's kind of turnout, couldn't have
been better. Sport and recreation, Am I right?
Speaker 3 (24:59):
Correct? Yeah? Yeah, sport and exercise. So yeah, like another
so you set up for and a part of you know,
the view at high performance sport and within you know
sport is that it's really important to be doing something
outside of it as well to then you know, either
set yourself up for a career past sport or even
(25:21):
just have something outside of only training that you can
focus on when it's not when you're not training, because
you know, if something in your sporting career, if it's
going really well or if it's going bad like it's,
you've got those big fluctuations, and if you've got other
things to focus on as well, you can take your
mind off it and and do that kind of stuff.
So yeah, I'm really grateful that we you know, we
(25:45):
can get scholarships to to go and study or or
go and internship. They have an internship program as well
with some different companies which I haven't been a part of,
but I know other athletes have, and you know, stuff
like that that makes a big difference in your career
and then also past after sport as well. So yeah,
that's pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (26:03):
Yeah too, right, Yeah, and you've got the degree now,
you capt.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Yeah, yeah, got that. So I finished in twenty.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
When he ended up, was there a Bacheler of business
studies or something?
Speaker 3 (26:11):
Ye, a Batchelor of Sport and Exercise. Yeah, So I
think i'll probably I'll probably look at doing another like
a bit more study and because I'm really interested in
like engineering and the design stuff kind of what I
started at Otago. So yeah, like you know, like the
America's Couple, the technology and the around the boats and
that and all that stuff really fizzes me up. So
(26:33):
I love to go and do something like that. So
I think a bit more engineering and that kind of stuff.
But I'll just have to figure out how it's going
to work around around training, because that's the biggest commitment,
the biggest important thing to me.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
So yeah, well, don't go past Russell Coots. He's got
a big plot of land just at the top of
a mcay. He owns half the Crown Range. He's got
his home golf course there, and he's a good rooster. Yeah,
perfect ideal boy.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Gold Sports presents Murray Digger's sporting lives with Callaway.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
In twenty twenty one, you were the silver middleist and
the kayak cross at the World Championships, beaten by Joe Clark.
Now this man has won three World Championships, yep. And
he was there side you as you go down the
huot at the final and he's you know, is he
the benchmark?
Speaker 3 (27:29):
Yeah, for sure, for sure. He's been the best in
the world for basically since twenty twenty one. So he
won that World's and then the next two after that,
and you know, some people say, oh, it's quite unpredictable,
there's a bit of luck in it, but it's like
he was what he's been winning all the time. So yeah,
so it was quite cool to be in the final
with him, and like we talked, I'm good friends with
(27:51):
them as well. I did a lot of training with
them last year. We had the World Champs in London,
so did a lot of training throughout the year because
that's where he was based. And yeah, it was It's
quite cool. And he's like he's basically like physically he's
pretty gifted. He's super powerful and really really explosive and
for kite cross it fits him perfectly. So to kind of,
(28:13):
I guess beat him at his own game a little
bit in the in the cross and get out in
front of the start was was pretty cool. And did
you plan to beat him? Yeah, but like we we
obviously knew that the starts are important and uh and
that kind of thing. And he he actually he works
(28:33):
with Luca's old coach now so so Campbell he used
to coach Lucas now he's moved. He's a British guy.
He moved back to the UK and started coaching Joe,
And yeah, like we know that he he Joe actually
he quite likes to to fight during the races, so
we knew that, you know, if we get beside him,
he'd probably start wanting to have a little well not
(28:55):
a tussle, but you know, just a bit of argie BARGI. Yeah,
sometimes can't help himself. So it actually probably paid off
for me because there was someone in between us and
they ended up having a little scuffle and just giving
me enough space. But yeah, I think, yeah, he basically
like I would have expected him and probably going into
the final him to be leading off the first, like
(29:19):
out of the start, and our kind of goal was
basically to do our best to stay as close to
him as possible, and it probably would we would probably
would have split the course anyway, So I'd go to
an opposite upstream and then try to stay with him
through the middle section and then attack him in the
last up and by that time, hopefully you've got a
kind of middle locked away, you know, you're not going
(29:39):
to drop out of the top three, and then yeah,
try to take him for first. But yeah, it turned
out the other way, which is pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
So in looking back to the Olympics, you know, what
are your most prominent memories.
Speaker 3 (29:54):
Well, I mean, apart from the like finishing the final
and and winning this thing and standing on the podium
and watching the flag get raised and and and you know,
singing the national anthem, that was pretty cool, But I think,
you know, I had a good few moments with my
coach and when we're just prior to the racing or
(30:16):
even even the sylum at the start and we're standing
at the start line just doing our final kind of
walk through and just have a moment to ourselves and
go look at that. That's pretty epic, And like, the
crowd was amazing and it was just cool to be there,
and especially with Aaron, my coach, who has actually been
(30:36):
part of my my journey for a long long time.
He didn't coach me for a few few years in
the middle, but he came back in just at the
end of last year, so that was pretty special. And yeah,
I mean the whole thing was an epic experience. It
was pretty pretty bloody cool. But I think the big
(30:57):
moments obviously the opening ceremony and then the closing ceremony
as well.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
So you carried the flag and.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
I carried the flag as well beside Lisa. It was
pretty special. So yeah, walking into I think it was
about eighty thousand people and Stard de France was carrying
the Kiwi flag is pretty insane. So definitely moments I'll
never forget. For sure.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
We're sort of dodge talking about your coach and I
think we should talk.
Speaker 3 (31:23):
Yeah, he deserves some time.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Yeah, Aaron.
Speaker 3 (31:25):
Who Aaron Osborne, Right, Yeah, from Hawk's Bay originally. Yeah, so,
oh he's a good man. He yeah, he he Actually,
as I spoke earlier about our program sort of getting
built and stuff, he was actually a massive part of
building the whole program. So when we were when not him,
(31:46):
but my kind of group was all in the under
twenty three or junior categories, he was kind of building
a program for us to to then progress because before that,
like Luca and Mike Dawson kind of on their own,
like there was nothing really around them to help them
get better. They were just they were just battling away
by themselves, and they got they got really good just
(32:09):
through their own willpower of you know, finding bits and
pieces here and there and traveling around Europe, and and
Aaron kind of helped build build something. And then he
in twenty eighteen moved on to a role at Canoe
Sprint so flatwooter kayaking and like a project managing kind
(32:34):
of role, so not coaching directly, but sort of managing
project with clubs and stuff. And then yeah, just the
end of last year, I wanted a bit of a
change and the setup that I had and we've always
been good mates, and I've always kind of looked at
him for some advice and yeah, he just he was
(32:55):
more than happy to help me out. And my partner
Courtney was like, why don't you just he helped me
started writing my training programs and stuff. She was like,
why don't you just ask him to go to Australia
with you for the Olympic selection Like, I'm sure he'll
be happy to go with you. And so, yeah, he
came to Ozzie was he was more than happy to
come over with me, and yeah, once sort of selections
(33:15):
were done, was, yeah, he was kind of he was
kind of hooked hooked back in. I roped him back in.
So man, it was pretty cool to bring him over
and have him there with me because I think deep down,
like the only reason he was there or with me
is because all like he just wanted to help and
he just wanted to see me do well. And and
(33:39):
you know, like he wasn't there because he wanted to
go to the Olympics. He's been before and you know,
not as a coach, and and you know, he was
just there because he wanted to help me. And like
the trust that that builds that someone who's right in
your corner and just there because all he cares about
is helping you. That's huge, right, Like when things aren't
(34:00):
going well or you know, before big events, it's natural
for your brain to kind of like go to random
places and start doubting yourself and doubting your training and
that kind of stuff. But I always had him in
my corner. Who who was just there for me and
that was the only reason. So that was pretty cool.
And yeah, we had a good few moments at the
(34:22):
Games and then man like he was like the first
person to just jump on me at the end and yeah,
give me a big hug after. I wont this so
pretty cool? He's a good man.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
Are the money races in Europe?
Speaker 3 (34:36):
Not really? No, so the World Cup series.
Speaker 2 (34:38):
But what's going to happen surely is that that is
going to happen?
Speaker 3 (34:42):
Well, I think so. Yeah. I think the Kaya Cross
is just perfectly built for it.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
People loved it.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
Yeah, yeah, it was a massive success.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
And often interrupt But the other thing I understand is
that the Cross is going to take over now from
the sprints, the flatwater sprints.
Speaker 3 (35:00):
Yeah, so what happened was they moved they took away
the two hundred meter, which is a pretty exciting event.
And then yeah, they sort of took some quota ethnic
quota space because at the Olympics you can only have
a certain amount of people, so they.
Speaker 2 (35:17):
See this as being a way of appealing to younger people.
Speaker 3 (35:21):
I think, so yeah, and I'm not.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
Saying it's k wrestling, but it can get pretty pretty people.
Speaker 3 (35:27):
Yeah, and it like I think it was a massive
success at the Games, and which is awesome for our sport,
and like it's a perfect package to market.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
To think, so some entrepreneur is going to get into
this very quickly.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yeah, yeah, so and even like if it's just a
kaya cross series or whatever that but you know, like
crowds love it if it wasn't. You know. I just
always think like in the evening, you've got a bit
of a DJ, you know, people are having a good time,
having some beers and stuff and watching and it's bloody exciting.
And even if it's not, you know, you've got your
(36:04):
favorite athlete who any races one heat and then goes
through the next round. You wait for a while, but
every round is exciting and it's awesome to watch. So yeah,
at the moment, I think if you win the overall
World Cup series, so it's five races. If you win
the overall thing, you get two and a half thousand euros,
which is, you know, less than five grand, which is
(36:26):
probably not even going to cover your accommodation for those
five races. So there's not a lot of cash in there.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
But I would think that with that gold medal coming
into New Zealand, that that's been worth preaty for you.
Speaker 3 (36:39):
Yeah hopefully. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
So yeah, going rate for those it was, but you know,
people were getting fifty thousand and some sports.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
I thought, yeah, So what happens now is there's like
a We had a thing called PIGS back in the day,
so that was I don't know how much, but you
got basically like a grant for the following year. So
now we have a thing called TAPS, which is like
tiered Athlete Performance Support and basically if you at a level,
(37:08):
you go on to a basic training grant, which is
about thirty two thousand dollars I think. So that's kind
of what they think is like enough to sort of
like live on and just be able to train, and
then basically if you're top eight at a pinnacle event,
so the world Champs or the Olympics, it goes tiered
up to first place. So I'm not too sure what
(37:30):
that looks like for me at the moment, but hopefully
it means I'll get some good support for the next
four years and try to, yeah, go to LA and
defend it.
Speaker 2 (37:40):
Do you have personal sponsors.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
I've got one long time sponsor, Fusion five Business Solutions,
so they've they've supported me for a long, long long time.
Then they're awesome and they were really really stoked to
see that I came away with this. They also support
Lewis Kleber and Erica a few with her, so two swimmers.
(38:02):
So yeah, they've been really cool. So I'm looking forward
to going and catching up with them. Thrilled with you,
Yeah hopefully. So, yeah that's cool, but yeah hopefully. I
mean even this morning, like I've been on a bit
of a media tour, so been all around the radio
stations and on breakfast TV and stuff like that. So man,
it's like I would have never even dreamed of it
(38:24):
as a kid, that yeah, I'd be able to go
into the Olympics or bring one of these back, and yeah,
be able to be going on New Zealand media and yeah,
it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (38:34):
The fascination to me is simple, that'll continue as long
as you and I'm sure you're going to do this
stay grounded in your Central Otago values that your mum
and dad have tort you. Yeah, because that's what that's
what the whole thing is about. I've seen guys and
you were aware. I've been doing this sort of job
for well more, probably more years than anyone else, and
(38:56):
some of them lose their plot. Yeah, you know, they
get too big for their boots. I was going to
use rude to about where the head would go, but
the guts of it, quite simply is you are very natural,
You're passionate about what you do, and you want to
do more. Yeah, for sure, And clearly you know you're
(39:18):
into the next four year cycle once you've had a
good spell from this. Yeah, is that right?
Speaker 3 (39:22):
Yeah, that's for sure. Yeah, Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm just yeah,
like I say, like, I just love love paddling, and
that community behind me is the biggest thing, and I
think they've they've instilled some pretty pretty good values. And
growing up in Central it was just like the place
for it. Man, it's I love it so much and
(39:42):
those people like my mum and dad and Gordy Rainer
and Sarge like Cauldn't get much better mentals than that.
So yeah, I'm pretty stoked.
Speaker 2 (39:52):
Well I'm stoked took the time to come in and
have a yarn to me today. It was important. I
looked at everybody who was involved in the Olympics, and
you were someone I didn't know a lot about. And
I thought I had one lock and I thought, I
know that guy. I know where he's from. So congratulations
on the medal.
Speaker 3 (40:13):
Fantastic, Thank you very much. Yeah, it's been a pleasure.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Well that was the gold medalist Finn Butcher.
Speaker 3 (40:27):
There.
Speaker 2 (40:29):
It was another episode of Murray Deeca's Sporting Lives, brought
to you by Callaway. They are the balls to use,
no question about that. Now. If you enjoyed this episode,
please follow the podcast on iHeartRadio or wherever you get
your podcasts. We'll be back next month on Murray Deeka's
(40:49):
Sporting Lives.
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