Dame Lisa Marie Carrington (born 23 June 1989) is a flatwater canoeist and New Zealand's most successful Olympian, having won a total of five gold medals and one bronze medal. She won three consecutive gold medals in the Women's K1 200metres at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

and

2020 Summer 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 ...

, as well as gold in the same event at the 2011 Canoe Sprint World Championships. At the 2020 Summer Olympics she also won a gold medal in the K2 500metres, with crewmate

Caitlin Regal Caitlin Regal (; born 9 February 1992) is a New Zealand canoeist. On 3 August 2021 she won a gold medal alongside Lisa Carrington in the K-2 500 metres event. Early life Regal was born on 9 February 1992 in Takapuna, a suburb of North Shore ...

, and as an individual in the K1 500metres.

Early and private life

Born in

Tauranga Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...

, Carrington was raised in

Ōhope Ōhope, until 1974 known as Ohope Beach, is a beach settlement in the eastern Bay of Plenty, on the northeast coast of the North Island of New Zealand, six kilometres east and over the hill, from Whakatāne. Name The New Zealand Ministry for Cu ...

, a satellite town of

Whakatāne Whakatāne ( , ) is the seat of the Bay of Plenty region in the North Island of New Zealand, east of Tauranga and north-east of Rotorua, at the mouth of the Whakatāne River. Whakatāne District is the encompassing territorial authority, whi ...

in the eastern

Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runawa ...

, and is of

Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki is one of the three principal Māori iwi of the Tūranga district; the others being Rongowhakaata and Ngai Tamanuhiri. It is numerically the largest of the three, with 6,258 affiliated members as of 2013. The rohe (territo ...

and

Ngāti Porou Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Porou is affiliated with the 28th Maori Battalion and has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi in New Zealand ...

as well as European descent. She attended Whakatane High School, and

Massey University Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...

in Albany. As a child she played

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

and aspired to be a

Silver Fern ''Alsophila dealbata'', synonym ''Cyathea dealbata'', commonly known as the silver fern or silver tree-fern, or as ponga or punga (from Māori or ),The Māori word , pronounced , has been borrowed into New Zealand English as a generic term fo ...

. She married her long-time partner Michael Buck in 2022.

Canoeing

In June 2009 she won a bronze medal at the World Cup regatta held in

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also #Etymology, other alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat ...

, Hungary, competing alongside

Teneale Hatton Teneale Hatton (born 13 January 1990 in Queenstown, Otago) is a New Zealand flatwater canoer. Hatton has two older brothers and moved from her hometown, Queenstown, to Auckland at the age of five. She attended Carmel College and as of 2012 ...

in the women's K2 1000 metres event. In May 2010 the pair won the gold medal in the same event at a World Cup regatta in

Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...

, France. In late 2010 she started working with coach Gordon Walker. Carrington and Hatton won three gold medals at the 2010 Oceania Canoe Championships; they won the 500 and 1000 metres K2 events and were joined by Rachael Dodwell and Erin Taylor to win the K4 500 metres. The pair became the first New Zealanders ever to reach a World Championship A final at the

ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships The ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships are an international event in canoe racing, one of two Summer Olympic sport events organized by the International Canoe Federation (the other being the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships). The World Cham ...

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

, Poland. Their time of one minute 42.365 seconds in the semi-finals meant they qualified third fastest for the final of the K2 500 metres, however they finished the final in ninth position. At the 2011 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Szeged, Carrington won the gold medal in the women's K1 200 metres event; and became the first New Zealand woman to win a canoeing World Championship title. The result secured an Olympic qualification berth for New Zealand. She was also honoured with the

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 ...

Senior Sports Woman of the Year Award. Carrington represented

New Zealand at the 2012 Summer Olympics New Zealand competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. This was the nation's twenty-fourth appearance at the Olympics. The New Zealand Olympic Committee sent 184 athletes, 97 men, and 87 women to the Games to ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. In the K2 500 metres, Carrington and Erin Taylor finished 7th, and in the K1 200 metres Carrington won the gold medal. At the 2012 Oceania Championships, Carrington won gold medals in the K1 200 metres and in the K2 200 metres with Taylor. At the

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, she defended her gold medal in the K1 200 metres event and won a bronze medal in the K1 500 metres event. In doing so, she became the first New Zealand woman to win multiple medals at the same Olympic games. Carrington was the flag bearer at the 2016 closing ceremony. At the 2019 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Szeged, Carrington won gold medals in the K1 500 metres and K1 200 metres events. On 3 August 2021, at the

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Carrington won her third consecutive gold medal in the K1 200 metres event. On the same day, she and her crewmate

won a gold medal in the K2 500 metres event. On 5 August 2021, she won a further gold medal in the K1 500 metres event. With her third gold medal, she became New Zealand's most successful Olympian of all time, with a total of six medals (one more than fellow canoeists Ian Ferguson and

Paul MacDonald Christopher Paul MacDonald (born 8 January 1960) is a New Zealand sprint canoeist who competed from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. He is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most successful international athletes and holds innumerable ...

and equestrian Mark Todd), five of which are gold (one more than Ferguson's previous record). She is also the first New Zealand woman to win three gold medals at a single Olympics, and was referred to by the ''

New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation of all newspapers ...

'' as the "Greatest of All Time (GOAT) in the boat".

Awards and honours

Carrington was named as New Zealand's senior Māori sportswoman and overall Māori sportsperson of the year in November 2012. In the

2013 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2013 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hon ...

, she 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 ...

for services to kayaking. In 2014, Carrington was named the NEXT Woman of the Year in the Sport category. At the 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021

Halberg Awards The Halberg Awards are a set of awards, given annually since 1949, recognising New Zealand's top sporting achievements. They are named for New Zealand former middle-distance runner and Olympic gold medalist Sir Murray Halberg. The initial award ...

, she won the Sportswoman of the Year, and in 2016 and 2021 she also won the Supreme Award. On 11 February 2021, Carrington was named the most influential Māori sports personality of the past 30 years in the ''Māori Sports Awards 30 in 30'' show, aired on

Māori Television 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 Co ...

. In the

2022 New Year Honours The 2022 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations ...

, Carrington was promoted to

Dame Companion 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 rend ...

, for services to canoe racing.

Sponsorship and advertising work

Carrington is an athlete ambassador for Beef and Lamb New Zealand, alongside

Eliza McCartney Eliza McCartney (born 11 December 1996) is a New Zealand track and field athlete who competes in the pole vault and won the bronze medal in this event at the 2016 Summer Olympics. She is the current New Zealand and Oceania record holder at , a ...

Sophie Pascoe Dame Sophie Frances Pascoe (born 8 January 1993) is a New Zealand para-swimmer. She has represented New Zealand at four Summer Paralympic Games from 2008 Summer Paralympics, 2008, winning a total of eleven gold medals, seven silver medals an ...

and Sarah Walker. She is also an ambassador for Southern Cross Health Society.

References

External links

* * * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Carrington, Lisa Living people 1989 births New Zealand Māori sportspeople Olympic canoeists of New Zealand Canoeists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for New Zealand Olympic medalists in canoeing People educated at Whakatane High School Sportspeople from Whakatāne Dames Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medalists in kayak Massey University alumni Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Ngāti Porou people Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki people Canoeists at the 2016 Summer Olympics New Zealand female canoeists Olympic bronze medalists for New Zealand Canoeists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Sporting dames