Issue date
I first met Tony probably a little over a year ago. I was immediately impressed by his attitude and desire to learn as much as he could to sail as well as he could, and to get as much out of the boat he was sailing as possible. His meteoric rise in sailing – first in the Hansa Liberty fleet and Kiwi Cup winner at this year’s Hansa Nationals, his first ever regatta – marks him as a man on a mission to be the best he can, but not at the expense of his fellow competitors. The only thing to fear from Tony is a handshake – having been there, I can see why he is so good at powerlifting! Here is a little bit about Tony in his own words.
2009 was the first year I have ever competed in any sport since I lost my leg. I went to my first PNZ Paralympic Nationals Representing Auckland in Powerlifting. I got Silver, I was hooked.
Unfortunately they didn't have any more PNZ Nationals so I turned to the able-bodied powerlifting arena. Since then I have achieved my powerlifting goals of -
Gold in NZ National Powerlifting
Gold in Commonwealth Powerlifting
Gold in Oceania Powerlifting.
I received an email about a year ago saying that there was a have a go day in disabled sailing so I went along and immediately realised in a heartbeat that I love the sport. In January of this year I went along with friends from Sailability Auckland to Wellington to compete in the New Zealand 2015 Hansa Class National champs and the Kiwi Cup, and was very excited as this would be my very first regatta. To my huge jaw dropping surprise I won the Liberty Nationals and the Kiwi Cup. Many have asked me of how I did it and the answer is always the same "I have no idea but it was exciting!"
Having humbling achievements in 2 different sports, Powerlifting and Sailing, I am thankful to all the stepping stone hand holds that people have given me along the way.
Current Future Plans as of today.
Powerlifting - Break the Oceania and NZ Records.
Sailing - To represent NZ in Hansa Worlds in a Liberty.
Now it's back to the gym and the water for more training.
