Mahe Drysdale
Encyclopedia
Alexander Mahé Owens Drysdale, MNZM
(born 19 November 1978 in Melbourne
, Australia
)) is a New Zealand
rower
and five-time World Champion single scull
er. The name Mahé came from the largest island
in the Seychelles.
Drysdale attended Tauranga Boys' College
in Tauranga
, New Zealand, then the University of Auckland
. He began rowing at university at the age of 18. He gave up rowing to concentrate on his studies, but began rowing again after watching fellow New Zealander Rob Waddell
win gold at the 2000 Olympic Games.
Drysdale began competing at World Cup level in 2002, in the New Zealand coxless four. After the 2004 Olympic Games, in which his New Zealand crew finished fifth in the final, Drysdale switched to the single scull, winning the 2005 World Championships at Gifu
, Japan
, despite having broken two vertebrae in a crash with a water skier earlier in the year.
He successfully defended his title in 2006 at Dorney Lake
, Eton
, England
, in 2007 at Munich
, Germany
, and again in 2009 in Poznan
, Poland
, holding off Britain
's Alan Campbell
and Czech Republic
's Ondřej Synek
. At the 2009 World Rowing Championships he also defeated his own World Record in the single and pushed it to 6:33.35.
Drysdale is a member of the West End Rowing Club
in Avondale, Auckland
, New Zealand and Tideway Scullers
, London.
Drysdale was officially selected as New Zealand's Olympic heavyweight sculler on March 7, 2008. He was also chosen to carry the flag for New Zealand
during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony
.
Unfortunately for Drysdale, a severe gastrointestinal infection in the week before his final saw him off form and he was only able to carry the bronze medal
for the men's single scull
. The gold
and silver
medals went to Olaf Tufte
from Norway
and Ondřej Synek
from the Czech Republic
, respectively. After his race Drysdale was carried into a waiting ambulance
, after being carried by life raft after his race, clearly suffering from his illness. He was also seen vomiting. He was, however, able to stand to be awarded his medallion.
Drysdale won the 2006 supreme Halberg award, the University of Auckland
Young Alumnus of the Year Award in 2007, and was awarded Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to rowing in the New Years Honours 2009.
Drysdale won the Sportsground.co.nz Sportsman of the Year award in 2008.
Drysdale has also represented New Zealand in Canoe Polo as a Junior. He represented NZ in an Under 18 team that toured to Fiji. Later he was a NZ Under 21 representative that toured to Tonga. In 1999 – 2000 he was Executive of NZ Canoe Polo.
New Zealand Order of Merit
The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order established in 1996 "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rendered meritorious service to the Crown and nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions or other merits."The order includes five...
(born 19 November 1978 in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
)) is a New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
rower
Rowing (sport)
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
and five-time World Champion single scull
Single scull
A single scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for a single person who propels the boat with two oars, one in each hand....
er. The name Mahé came from the largest island
Mahé, Seychelles
Mahé is the largest island of the Seychelles, lying in the north east of the nation. The population of Mahé is 80,000. It contains the capital city of Victoria and accommodates 90% of the country's total population...
in the Seychelles.
Drysdale attended Tauranga Boys' College
Tauranga Boys' College
Tauranga Boys' College is a state secondary school for boys, located on the edge of the downtown area of Tauranga, New Zealand. The school was founded in 1958. The school prides itself on its successful involvement in academia, sport and the arts.-History:...
in Tauranga
Tauranga
Tauranga is the most populous city in the Bay of Plenty region, in the North Island of New Zealand.It was settled by Europeans in the early 19th century and was constituted as a city in 1963...
, New Zealand, then the University of Auckland
University of Auckland
The University of Auckland is a university located in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest university in the country and the highest ranked in the 2011 QS World University Rankings, having been ranked worldwide...
. He began rowing at university at the age of 18. He gave up rowing to concentrate on his studies, but began rowing again after watching fellow New Zealander Rob Waddell
Rob Waddell
Robert "Rob" Norman Waddell, ONZM, is a New Zealand rower, yachtsman and rugby union player. Waddell has one of the highest VO2 max intake levels of any athlete ever tested. He holds the fastest 2000 metre indoor rowing machine time in the world, clocking a time of 5 mins 36.6 secs...
win gold at the 2000 Olympic Games.
Drysdale began competing at World Cup level in 2002, in the New Zealand coxless four. After the 2004 Olympic Games, in which his New Zealand crew finished fifth in the final, Drysdale switched to the single scull, winning the 2005 World Championships at Gifu
Gifu, Gifu
is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku period, various warlords, including Oda Nobunaga, used...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, despite having broken two vertebrae in a crash with a water skier earlier in the year.
He successfully defended his title in 2006 at Dorney Lake
Dorney Lake
Dorney Lake is a purpose-built rowing lake in the United Kingdom. It is located at grid reference near the village of Dorney, Buckinghamshire, and near the towns of Windsor and Eton, close to the River Thames. The lake is privately owned and financed by Eton College, who have spent £17 million...
, Eton
Eton, Berkshire
Eton is a town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, lying on the opposite bank of the River Thames to Windsor and connected to it by Windsor Bridge. The parish also includes the large village of Eton Wick, 2 miles west of the town, and has a population of 4,980. Eton was in Buckinghamshire until...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, in 2007 at Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and again in 2009 in Poznan
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, holding off Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Alan Campbell
Alan Campbell (sculler)
Alan Campbell is a British scullerCampbell started rowing for his school, Coleraine Academical Institution for Boys, in Northern Ireland before moving to London and joining the Tideway Scullers School....
and Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
's Ondřej Synek
Ondrej Synek
Ondřej Synek is a Czech rower and World Champion from Single Sculls at Lake Karapiro on the 2010 World Rowing Championships. He won a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.- References :...
. At the 2009 World Rowing Championships he also defeated his own World Record in the single and pushed it to 6:33.35.
Drysdale is a member of the West End Rowing Club
West End Rowing Club
West End Rowing Club is based at Saunders Reserve, Avondale, Auckland, New Zealand. West End Rowing Club is New Zealand's leading rowing club with a strong, proud history both on and off the water...
in Avondale, Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand and Tideway Scullers
Tideway Scullers
Tideway Scullers School is a rowing club located on the tideway of the River Thames in Chiswick, London.The club is very successful at both junior and senior level...
, London.
Drysdale was officially selected as New Zealand's Olympic heavyweight sculler on March 7, 2008. He was also chosen to carry the flag for New Zealand
2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...
during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony
2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...
.
Unfortunately for Drysdale, a severe gastrointestinal infection in the week before his final saw him off form and he was only able to carry the bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
for the men's single scull
Single scull
A single scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for a single person who propels the boat with two oars, one in each hand....
. The gold
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
and silver
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
medals went to Olaf Tufte
Olaf Tufte
Olaf Karl Tufte is a Norwegian competition rower.At the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Olympics he won the gold medal in the men's single sculls. He won silver in the men's double sculls at the 2000 Summer Olympics together with Fredrik Bekken...
from Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Ondřej Synek
Ondrej Synek
Ondřej Synek is a Czech rower and World Champion from Single Sculls at Lake Karapiro on the 2010 World Rowing Championships. He won a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.- References :...
from the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, respectively. After his race Drysdale was carried into a waiting ambulance
Ambulance
An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
, after being carried by life raft after his race, clearly suffering from his illness. He was also seen vomiting. He was, however, able to stand to be awarded his medallion.
Drysdale won the 2006 supreme Halberg award, the University of Auckland
University of Auckland
The University of Auckland is a university located in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest university in the country and the highest ranked in the 2011 QS World University Rankings, having been ranked worldwide...
Young Alumnus of the Year Award in 2007, and was awarded Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to rowing in the New Years Honours 2009.
Drysdale won the Sportsground.co.nz Sportsman of the Year award in 2008.
Drysdale has also represented New Zealand in Canoe Polo as a Junior. He represented NZ in an Under 18 team that toured to Fiji. Later he was a NZ Under 21 representative that toured to Tonga. In 1999 – 2000 he was Executive of NZ Canoe Polo.
External links
- http://www.mahedrysdale.co.nz/