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If Tom ‘the Olympian of tomorrow’ is the type of
athlete you would like to align your business to,
Tom would you love to hear from you.
To reach Tom, please contact his management
team at Mazey Sports Management and follow
his progress on social media.
For more information or sponsorship enquires
please contact Brenton Mazey on Brenton@
mazeysports.com.
Instagram: @tom_green_athlete
Facebook: Tom Green Australian Junior Kayaking
Representative
Website: www.mazeysports.com
10 | Touchline issue 22 | November 2015
tom green feature
Tom’s natural waterman abilities shone through and Tom
was selected in the U16 men's team heading to the World
Championships in Calgary Canada.
Tom made the final at the world Outrigger Sprint
Championship in Calgary, Canada in the U16 V1 Division.
He was also a member of the silver medal winning U19 V12
crew.
Skip forward a few years to 2015 and Tom had just
completed his first season competing on the surf ski for
the Currumbin Vikings Surf Lifesaving Club in Queensland.
This change of sporting discipline let him taste immediate
success and what it meant to have a paddle between his
hands. Little did Tom know that paddle between his hands
would ignite a fire inside of him that would change Tom’s
Life forever.
At the age of 15 Tom made the U17 Men’s Surf Ski Final at
the Australian Surf Lifesaving Championships. Tom along
with his Currumbin Vikings Surf Ski Coach Chris Maynard
made the decision to hone in his new found paddling ability
and attempt to make the 2015 U16 Olympic Hopes Sprint
Kayaking Team.
With a borrowed kayak, and very limited kayak training Tom
went off to the Australian Sprint Kayaking Championships in
Sydney. To his surprise, Tom found himself on the Australian
Championship Podium 11 times. 5 Gold, 5 Silver and 1
Bronze medals.
In Tom words “I went to the Australian Kayaking
Championships this year not knowing what to expect. To
my surprise I ended up being ‘that kid in board shorts’. It
became a bit of a joke amongst my competitors that I didn’t
look the part because I raced in board shorts.”
Tom didn’t look the part but he ended up having the
last laugh by finishing on the podium in every event he
contested. From these performances, unsurprisingly, Tom
was selected to represent Australia in the U16 Men’s Kayak
Sprint at the 2015 Canoe Sprint Olympic Hopes Regatta in
Poland.
The Olympic Hopes Regatta event is held in one of four
locations throughout Europe each year. It is considered
a significant step on the path towards future Olympic
representation and each year the world’s best U18 paddler’s
compete head to head to gain valuable international
experience.
After a solid preparation under the watchful eye of former
Australian representative and kayak coach Matt Roser,
Tom left for Poland determined to make an impressive
international debut. With support from Kayaking royalty in
the likes of duel Olympic and World Championship medalist
Ken Wallace and Anders Gustafsson, a five time world
champion. Tom was ready to make his international debut,
and impress he did! Despite his inexperience Tom proved
that his Australian Championship results were no fluke.
Tom has just returned from Poland and the young kid who
raced in board shorts only few months earlier took home
Silver in the K1 500m and a Bronze in the K1 1000m.
The magnitude of Tom’s effort is incredible; an individual
Australian has not placed in two events in the last ten years
at the Olympic Hopes and for Tom who only started his
Kayaking career six months earlier, it shows he cannot only
take on the world’s best but beat them too.
This incredible rise to success has only made Tom hungrier
and shaped things to come. Tom is one of those athletes
that don’t come around very often. Growing up without
a dad and being raised by his mum Meredith, this young
athlete has grown up with strong core values.
Tom feels it’s important to give back to the community and
regularly completes volunteer patrols at Currumbin Surf
Club where his natural leadership was noticed.
Tom understands that hard work is what counts more
than talent when trying to achieve his dreams of winning
Olympic gold medals. He also shows his dedication to his
self-development outside of Kayaking by working hard to
complete his year 12 studies while competing, training and
remaining balanced.
Tom states, “I’m fortunate that the high school that I attend
will allow me to complete my year 12 studies split over two
years. That way I can have time to make the most of my
studies and still be able to juggle my training in the lead up
to the 2016 ICF Junior Canoe Sprint World Championships”.
Tom’s determination and competitiveness won’t stop until he
fulfills his dream of representing Australia at the 2020 Tokyo
Olympics and is standing proud on that Olympic podium.
To compete across the world in any given discipline
obviously comes at considerable cost. Even after all Tom’s
recent success he is currently unsponsored and is looking
for established companies that share his values and ethics to
help build a strong mutual relationship to make his Olympic
debut.
The story of Tom Green holds many twists and turns and
Touchline Magazine will keep you updated on Tom’s journey
over the next four years and share in the glory by seeing
this young athlete represent Australia on the world’s biggest
stage.