Cory Francis Hutchings (born 5 March 1972) is a former world surf lifesaving Ironman champion from Gisborne, New Zealand.[2] Hutchings was born in Gisborne to a family of passionate sportspeople. His father Ben was the coach of the New Zealand men's canoeing team who won gold in four events at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.[3] Cory's involvement in surf lifesaving begun at age five.[4]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Cory Francis Hutchings |
| Born | 8 March 1972 [1] Gisborne, New Zealand |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Surf Lifesaving |
| Event | Ironman |
| Retired | 2003 |
Career edit
Hutchings held the New Zealand Ironman title for more than a decade. He also represented New Zealand as an individual and as part of the national team.[4] At the beginning of his career he had trouble finding a sponsor. As a last resort he approached Durex condoms who were more than happy to sponsor him, making Hutchings the first athlete in New Zealand to be sponsored by a condom company which was controversial at the time. In 1994, he suffered from a debilitating bout of Hepatitis A which was picked up through water contamination at Manly, Sydney. During this time he ate three peeled beetroot a day as medication.[3] Hutchings won the World Surf Ironman biannual title in 1998, 2000 and 2002.[2][4] He retired from the professional circuit in 2003.[3]
Hutchings is currently working as an ambassador for SPARC's Sports Ambassador Programme. The mentoring programme aims to assist promising young athletes in achieving sporting goals.[5]
Sporting Achievements[citation needed] edit
- 1995 - 2nd in the Board and 3rd in the Ironman at the Australian National Championships
- 1995 - Won the New Zealand National Surf League Open Ironman
- 1996 - Won the New Zealand National Surf League Open Ironman
- 1996 - 2nd in the World Ironman
- 1997 - Won the New Zealand National Surf League Open Ironman
- 1998 - World IronMan Champion
- 1998 - NZ IronMan Champion
- 1999 - NZ IronMan Champion
- 1999 - NZ Board Champion
- 1999 - NZ Surf Swim Champion
- 2000 - 2nd Place in the Kellogg's Professional Surf League IronMan series
- 2000 - NZ IronMan Champion
- 2000 - NZ Board Champion
- 2000 - NZ Surf Swim Champion
- 2000 - World IronMan Champion
- 2002 - World IronMan Champion
Television appearances edit
Cory hosted TV2's local surf lifesaving television series Surf Club 174, and appeared as a contestant on the televisions shows Celebrity Treasure Island and Dancing with the Stars[4]
References edit
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ a b "Sports". Edgenz.com. Archived from the original on 26 May 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ a b c McMurran, Alistair (20 May 2009). "Surf life-saving: How a sporting great beet the odds". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
- ^ a b c d "Cory Hutchings". Television New Zealand. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
- ^ "Sport Ambassador Programme | SPARC". Archived from the original on 24 May 2010. Retrieved 4 June 2010.