Erik Horrie (born 17 October 1979) is an Australian wheelchair basketball player and a five-time world champion rower. He was a member of the

Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team The Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team is the men's wheelchair basketball side that represents Australia in international competitions. The team is known as the Rollers. Australia took the gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Paralym ...

. Switching to rowing in 2011, he made an immediate impact in the sport, first winning the NSW State Rowing Championships and then the National Rowing Championships in Adelaide. He has won silver medals at the

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

2020 Summer Paralympics The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, was an international multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the International Paraly ...

and gold medals at the

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

and

2018 World Rowing Championships The 2018 World Rowing Championships were the World Rowing Championships held at the regatta course in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The event was held from 9 to 16 September. Events held were men and women's open class, lightweight class, and para-rowing. ...

Personal

Horrie was born on 17 October 1979 in New Zealand. At the age of seven, he was made a

ward of the state In law, a ward is a minor or incapacitated adult placed under the protection of a legal guardian or government entity, such as a court. Such a person may be referenced as a "ward of the court". Overview The wardship jurisdiction is an ancient j ...

due to

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

in his home and subsequently spent most of his childhood in

foster care Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home (residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family mem ...

homes. In 2001, he was in a motor vehicle accident that left him a paraplegic. , he lives in

Penrith, New South Wales Penrith is a city in New South Wales, Australia, located in Greater Western Sydney, 55 kilometres (31 mi) west of the Sydney central business district on the banks of the Nepean River, on the outskirts of the Cumberland Plain. Its elevati ...

. In studying youth work, Horrie said "I want to help underprivileged kids because I can relate to what they may be going through. I’m not saying I understand, but hopefully use my experiences to show them they have a choice." Horrie is married to Michelle and they have three children.

Sporting career

Basketball Horrie was classified as a

4 point player 4-point player is a disability sport classification for wheelchair basketball. Players in this class have normal trunk function but have a reduced level of functioning in one or both of their lower limbs. They may have difficulty with sideways mov ...

. He played in Australia's National Wheelchair Basketball League's Brisbane Spinning Bullets. He was a member of the

. He attempted to make the team for the

2008 Summer Paralympics The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games (), the 13th Summer Paralympic Games, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao. It was ...

but did not get selected for the national team until 2009 when he played in the 2009 IBWF AOZ Oceania Championship and the 2009 Rollers World Challenge. Following that, he left the sport. Rowing Horrie is classified as an AS rower and is a member of the Dragon Rowing Club. He switched to rowing in 2011 following the 2008 Summer Paralympics after having been identified by a selector from

Rowing Australia Rowing Australia (RA) is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Australia. Established in 1925, it is the only organisation recognised by the Federation Internationale des Societies d’Aviron (FISA), the Australian Sports Commission ( ...

. In 2011, he did water training

Breakfast Creek The Breakfast Creek ( Aboriginal: ''Barrambin'') is a small urban stream that is a tributary of the Brisbane River, located in suburban Brisbane in the South East region of Queensland, Australia. Course and features Rising as the Enoggera Creek ...

and off-water training at

West End, Queensland West End is an inner southern Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , West End had a population of 9,474 people. The Australian Aborigine, Aboriginal name for the area is ''Kurilpa'', ...

. The year, he had a scholarship with the

Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...

. In 2011, he finished first at the New South Wales State Championship. At the 2011 National Rowing Championships in Adelaide, he finished first. In April 2011, he participated in a national team training camp at the Australian Institute of Sport. In the arms, shoulders men's single scull event at the 2011 World Championships in Bled, Slovenia, he finished third. He competed in the 2012 World Rowing Cup 3 event in Germany. He represented

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

at the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Gam ...

and he won a silver medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x. At the 2013 World Championships in

Chungju Chungju (충주시) is a city in North Chungcheong province, South Korea. Uamsan is a mountain located within the outskirts of the city. The city is famous for the annual martial arts festival held in October. Also of note, former UN Secretary-G ...

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, he won a gold medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x. He was coached by Jason Baker. He won back to back gold medals by winning the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x at the

2014 World Rowing Championships The 2014 World Rowing Championships were the 44th edition of the World Rowing Championships and were held from 24 to 31 August 2014 at Bosbaan, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the second occasion on which the event had been held in Amsterdam, or ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Horrie won his third consecutive Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x title at the 2015 World Championships in Aiguebelette,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. At the

2016 Rio Paralympics ) , nations = 159 , athletes = 4,342 , opening = 7 September , closing = 18 September , opened_by = President Michel Temer , cauldron = Clodoaldo Silva , events = 528 in 22 sports , stadium = Maracanã , sum ...

, he won the silver medal in the Men's Single Sculls – ASM1x. This repeated his result at the London Olympics. Horrie won his four world championships title in winning the gold medal in the Men's PR1M1x at the

2017 World Rowing Championships The 2017 World Rowing Championships were the 47th edition of the World Rowing Championships that were held from 24 September to 1 October 2017 in Sarasota, Florida. Host selection During 2013, Plovdiv and Sarasota, Florida both applied to hos ...

Sarasota Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. Horrie won the first PR1 M1x World Championship title raced over 2000 m and, but also set a new world's best time after crossing the line in a time of 9 minutes 39 seconds. At the

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

, he won his fifth consecutive title in the Men's PR1 Men's Single Scull and broke his own World's Best Time, crossing the line in a time of 9 minutes 16.90 seconds, some 8 seconds faster than his previous World Record. Horrie won the bronze medal in the Men's PR1 Men's Single Scull at the

2019 World Rowing Championships The 2019 World Rowing Championships were held in Ottensheim, Austria from 25 August to 1 September 2019. Apart from Ottensheim, the right to host the championships was contested by Hamburg in Germany, Račice in the Czech Republic, and Varese ...

in Linz-Ottensheim,

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. After the race, Horrie said 'It just wasn't my day, but I'm happy to come away with the medal considering the season I’ve had coming back from injury.' At the

, Horrie won his third Paralympic silver medal by finishing second in the Men's Single Sculls, with a time of 10:00.82. Horrie finished fourth in the Men's PR1 Men's Single Scull at the 2022 World Rowing Championships. Paratriathlon In 2013, he competed in the first ever

paratriathlon Para triathlon is a variant of the triathlon for athletes with a physical disability. The sport is governed by World Triathlon (TRI) (formerly known as ITU), and was first held as a Paralympic event at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, ...

held in Australia. He placed 2nd of 8 male handcycle/wheelchair athletes in the OTU Paratriathlon Oceania Championships in 2014.

Recognition

*2014–2014 World Rowing Para Rower of the Year. *2015 –

New South Wales Institute of Sport The New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) is a high performance sports training institute located in New South Wales, Australia. The New South Wales government agency provides world leading coaching, performance support and daily training ...

Male Athlete of the Year. *2018 – Rowing Australia Para-rower of the Year * 2020 –

Order of Australia Medal The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

for service to rowing. * 2021 - Rowing Australia Para-rower of the Year * 2022 - Rowing Australia Para-rower of the Year

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Horrie, Erik 1979 births Living people Rowers at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Rowers at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Rowers at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Sportsmen from Queensland Australian men's wheelchair basketball players Paralympic rowers of Australia Paralympic silver medalists for Australia Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics World Rowing Championships medalists for Australia Australian male rowers Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Paralympic medalists in rowing