Eric Murray

Eric Murray is a two time Olympic and eight time World Champion Rower. Eric knows there’s hard work, then there’s smarter-than-your-opposition-work. 

As a ‘fat’ kid growing up in Pukekohe, Eric took up rowing like many at school and continued the sport past his schooling days into the Club scene with the ambition to make it into a National team. On completing those first steps, Eric has gone on to be a member of the NZ Olympic Team at four consecutive Olympic Games.

It hasn’t been all plain sailing for Eric with a disappointment at the Beijing Olympics, after being World Champions the year before in the Men’s Four. Fortunately, this spurred him into The Kiwi Pair combination (with rowing doubles partner, Hamish Bond) which has become a history making decision. In the space of eight years, The Kiwi Pair have never lost a race, amassing an incredible 71 Consecutive race victories at 24 World Rowing events. Eric holds every conceivable record in rowing in the Men’s Pair and also is the current holder of four World Records on the indoor Rowing machine.

The journey of The Kiwi Pair hasn’t been without its up and downs - learning how to be successful and stay successful has been a key to the incredible legacy Eric and Hamish have left on the sport. There are not many people that have left a mark on the sport of Rowing as a globally recognisable combination.

In 2012 Eric was awarded a New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to Sport and Rowing and in the 2022 New Year Honours, Eric was announced to be Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM) for his services to Rowing. He along with Hamish Bond have been Halberg Team of the Year winners on four occasions and taken away the Supreme Award twice.