Triple win after early retirement

Press, 2 January 1985, Page 22 (Supplement)

Triple win after early retirement

The New. Zealand rowing eight suffered a surprise defeat at the 1984 Olympics, but lan Ferguson more than made up for it, as JOHN BURNING reports.

The 1984 New Zealand Sportsman of the Year, lan Ferguson, retired from competitive canoeing four years before his triple triumph in the Olympic Games at Los Angeles.

Disconsolate and broke after the Moscow Olympics in which he competed, he decided on his return to New Zealand to put aside his oars for good. It was a plea to join the K 4 the 1982 world championships wfifefe

drew Ferguson back into competitive canoeing.

Success at this event gave Ferguson the confidence he needed, to once again train for national and international races. Like other top canoeists, Ferguson came to the sport via surf lifesaving. It was while he was studying for his eventual Bachelor of Commerce and Administration at Victoria University that he was coerced into competing in the 1974 nationals. He won the Encourage class and came third in the open 500 metres.

While still a student and trying to fit his training around his studies, he competed in the Montreal Olympics two years later, but failed to qualify for the final of the KI 500.

After Montreal, Ferguson and his new wife, Alyson, went to Belgium where his training intensified and his experience grew. He then went to London where he worked making paddles, and trained on the Thames. In 1979 he hit the headlines at the world championships in Duisburg, not for his feats on the water, but for his dedication. Whereas all the other teams were staying in hotels, he pitched a tent on the edge of the course. He managed to get into one final even though persistent rain and a wet sleeping bag interrupted his sleep, but blew his chances of competing in another. . When news of his endeavours and spartan lifestyle at the championships became known, he was awarded a trophy for being the “only true amateur left.”

Ferguson reached his level in world competitions through his own endeavours, so when many athletes boycotted the Moscow Olympics in 1980 he had no qualms about taking his place in the competition.

He finished seventh in the KI 500 and eighth in the KI 1000, and on his return to New Zealand he decided to end his career. He was without funds and had decided he had done his best.

His financial problems were eased when he moved into the video games business and with this security his thirst for canoeing returned. His self-imposed exile did not last long and an improved showing by the New Zealand team at the world champion-

ships in 1982 hardened his resolve to reach the top in international competition.

Years of experience had taught him proper training methods and with his strong will-to-win, Ferguson spent about 35 hours a week canoeing up to 180 km with additional weight training. A silver medal at the world championship in 1983 was only an appetiser compared with what was to happen at Lake Casitas.

In two days he won three gold medals, two in the space of only 90 minutes. He was the fourth New Zealander to win more than one Olympic medal and gave New Zealand two medals in one day at an Olympics for the first time since 1976.