Nikki Ayers is an Australian Paralympic rower. She was a member of the PR3 Mix 4+ at the

2020 Tokyo 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 Paralympic ...

. Ayers and Jed Altschwager won a gold medal at the

2023 World Rowing Championships The 2023 World Rowing Championships were held from 3 to 10 September 2023 in Belgrade, Serbia. Medal summary Medal table Non-Olympic/Paralympic classes Men Women Pararowing References External links Official websiteWorld Rowing websi ...

and have been selected to compete at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

Personal

Ayers was born 3 March 1991. She grew up in

Narooma, New South Wales Narooma is a town in the Australian state of New South Wales on the far south coast. The town is on the Princes Highway, which crosses the Wagonga Inlet to North Narooma. The heritage town of Central Tilba is nearby to the south. The name Naro ...

and moved to Canberra to study for a nursing degree at University of Canberra. Ayers played rugby union and captained the ACT Women's Brumbies 7's team. In 2016, during a rugby union game, a tackle led to her dislocating her knee. the injury severed a major artery and nerve damage caused her to lose feeling in her foot. She underwent 16 operations to save her leg and repair her knee. In 2021, she worked as a registered nurse in the Intensive Care Unit at The Canberra Hospital and has a postgraduate Diploma in Critical Care.

Rowing

Ayers competed twice in the gruelling surf boat George Bass Marathon along the South Coast. Ayers' road to para rowing started through a 2017 Train4Tokyo session at 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 ...

. She commenced serious rowing training in January 2018 and was selected in the PR3 mixed coxed four at the

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. ...

where the crew finished fifth. She has won PR3 Women's Single Scull at Australian Rowing Championships in 2019 and 2021. At the

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 Paralym ...

, Ayers was a member of the PR3 Mix 4+ along with Tom Birtwhistle, James Talbot,

Alexandra Viney Alexandra Viney is an Australian Paralympic rower. She was a member of the PR3 Mix 4+ at the 2020 Summer Paralympics, 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and has been selected to compete at the 2024 Summer Paralympics, 2024 Paris Paralympics. Personal Vi ...

. Their cox was Renae Domaschenz. They qualified for the final after winning their Repechage with time of 7:06.98 but came fourth in the final and failed to win a medal. Ayers moved to Adelaide after completing her midwifery studies in Canberra in to train with Jed Altschwager in the PR3 Mixed Double. Ayers with Jed Altschwager won the gold medal in the PR3 Mixed Double at the

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

Recognition

* 023 - Rowing Australia Para Crew of the Year with Jed Altschwager. * 2023 - World Rowing Para Crew of the Year with Jed Altschwager

References

External links

* *
Australian Rowing History Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ayers, Nikki 1991 births Living people Rowers at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Rowers at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Paralympic rowers for Australia Australian female rowers People from the South Coast (New South Wales) Sportswomen from New South Wales 21st-century Australian sportswomen