Kerri Leigh Williams (née Gowler; born 18 December 1993) is a New Zealand
rower
Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...
. She is a national champion, an Olympic champion and double medallist, a three-time world champion and a current (2019) world champion in both the coxless pair and the women's eight.
Williams was born in
Raetihi
Raetihi, a small town in the center of New Zealand's North Island, is located at the junction of State Highways 4 and 49 in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. It lies in a valley between Tongariro and Whanganui National Parks, 11 kilometres west ...
in 1993. She is of
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...
descent, affiliating with
Rangitāne
Rangitāne is a Māori people, Māori iwi (tribe). Their rohe (territory) is in the Manawatū-Whanganui, Manawatū, Horowhenua, Wairarapa and Marlborough Region, Marlborough areas of New Zealand. She received her education at Nga Tawa Diocesan School in Marton. The school first started to offer a rowing programme in 2008 and a year later, Williams took this up. At the time, she was also competing as an equestrian but soon started focussing on rowing so much that she had to choose one of the sports. Her trainer told her three weeks after she had started rowing that she would one day represent New Zealand.
Jackie Gowler
Jackie Gowler (born 7 June 1996) is a New Zealand representative rower.
Biography
Gowler was born in 1996. She received her secondary schooling at Nga Tawa Diocesan School in Marton. While at school, she took up rowing inspired by her elder ...
, her younger sister by three years, took up rowing in 2010 inspired by her success; they have both made it into the New Zealand national rowing team. Their elder sister, Jaimee Gowler, remains active with horse riding. After school, Williams became a member of the Aramoho Wanganui Rowing Club.
Williams' international career started in 2013 with the women's eight. After participation in two
World Rowing Cup
The World Rowing Cup is an international rowing competition organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It began in 1997 and comprises three regattas (apart from in 2001 when there were four) held throughout early summer. In each even ...
s she won the B-final at the
2013 World Rowing Championships
The 2013 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 25 August to 1 September 2013 at Tangeum Lake
Tangeum Lake is an artificial lake at Chungju in South Korea.
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 ...
, South Korea. Williams won the gold medal in the coxless four 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 ...
in
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 ...
Grace Prendergast
Grace Elizabeth Prendergast (born 30 June 1992) is a former New Zealand sweep rower. She is a 15-time national champion in the premier category, an Olympic champion, a five-time world champion and the current (2022) world champion in the coxle ...
. With the
women's eight
An eight is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing (crew). It is designed for eight rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars, and is steered by a coxswain, or "cox".
Each of the eight rowers has one oar. The rowers, who sit ...
, she came fourth at the
2016 Rio Olympics
)
, nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams)
, athletes = 11,238
, events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines)
, opening = 5 August 2016
, closing = 21 August 2016
, opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer
, cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...
. She is New Zealand Olympian number 1278.
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 ...
, she became world champion in the women's
pair
Pair or PAIR or Pairing may refer to:
Government and politics
* Pair (parliamentary convention), matching of members unable to attend, so as not to change the voting margin
* ''Pair'', a member of the Prussian House of Lords
* ''Pair'', the Frenc ...
partnered with Prendergast. Williams and Prendergast regained that title 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 ...
.
Competing at the
2020 Tokyo Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...
at the
Sea Forest Waterway
The is a regatta venue for rowing (sport), rowing and canoeing, situated in Kōtō and Ōta, Tokyo, Ōta, Tokyo Bay, in Japan.
History
The venue was built for the 2020 Summer Olympics and 2020 Summer Paralympics, Paralympic Games. Construction ...
, Prendergast and Williams won their heat, the semi-final in a new world best time (beaten ten minutes earlier by Greece in the first semi-final), and the A final, for Olympic gold. They also won the heat in the eight, just three hours after their pair's heat. In the final, the New Zealand eight won silver behind Canada.
In the 2022 Queen's Birthday and Platinum Jubilee Honours, Williams was appointed a
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit
The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...