Former Sydney University student and Elite Athlete Program member Murray Stewart has been selected for the 2016 canoe sprint paddling Rio Olympic Games team.
Murray was selected by the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) to compete in the men’s K1, K2 and K4 1000m events.
Stewart’s selection comes as no surprise, after he dominated both Olympic selection events. Stewart claimed victory at the Oceania Sprint Paddling Championships by winning the gold in the men’s K1 1000m and K4 1000m. He followed this up by picking up another gold in the National Sprint Championships at Perth by winning the K2 1000m. Stewart’s impressive performances take his national title count to a staggering 3 in the K1 1000m, 7 in the K2 1000m, and 6 in the K4 1000m.
This will be Stewart’s second Olympics after he was selected to represent the green and gold at the 2012 London Games. In Stewart’s Olympic debut he took out gold in the K4 1000m, finished 8th in the B Final of the K1 1000m and 6th in his heat in the K1 200m. After 4 more years of experience and training, Murray is in a great position to better the performances from his last Olympic campaign.
Stewart, who will be turning 30 in July this year, graduated from The University of Sydney with a Bachelor in Design & Architecture and a Masters in Architecture in 2011.
Stewart will now take part in a number of camps and the upcoming World Cup series in preparation for the 2016 games. In these preparations the Aussie team will be determining combinations across the three disciplines, with their squad is being touted as one of the world’s best heading into Rio.
