Eric Murray MNZM

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Murray first went to the Maadi Cup, New Zealand’s premier school rowing regatta, in 1997, but did not achieve anything at Lake Karapiro.  In 1998, when the regatta was held at Lake Ruataniwha, he came third in the U16 double, and second in the U16 quad.  He was in his last year at high school in 1999, and at that year’s Maadi Cup, he won the U17 quad national title.  After their 1999 success, trainer Charles Haggie introduced them to people in the rowing scene so that they would end up with one of the dominant rowing clubs at the time after they left school: Avon Rowing Club, Auckland Rowing Club or Waikato Rowing Club.

Eric’s first world championship medal was as a member of the New Zealand coxless four at the 2007 World Rowing Championships.  Murray then went on to become a member of the triple World Champion coxless pair with fellow coxless four member Hamish Bond.  They won gold at the 2009 World Rowing Championships, and went on to retain their title at the 2010 and then 2011 World Rowing Championships. Eric’s achievements in both the coxless four and the coxless pair have seen him win two Halberg Sports Awards Team of the Year, first in 2007 with the four, and then in 2009 with Bond.

At the 2012 London Olympic Games Murray and teammate Bond took six seconds off the world record.  In the Olympic final Murray and Bond surged into the lead to win the gold medal, beating France and England.  The victory capped an undefeated streak that began when Murray and Bond began racing as a pair internationally in 2009.

Murray has also represented New Zealand at two Olympic Games as part of the coxless four, coming 5th in the A Final at the 2004 Olympics and winning the B Final for a 7th place overall in 2008.