Stephen Bruce Gurney (born 8 July 1963) is a New Zealand multisport and

triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the t ...

athlete. He has won the Coast to Coast race a record nine times.

Career

Up until 1994, he was a professional multisport and

athlete. From there he moved into what is known as

adventure racing Adventure racing (also called expedition racing) is typically a multidisciplinary team sport involving navigation over an unmarked wilderness course with races extending anywhere from two hours up to two weeks in length. Some races offer solo co ...

. In New Zealand, he has competed in races such as the Speights Coast to Coast and the

Southern Traverse Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

. Internationally he competed in race events such as the

Raid Gauloises The Raid Gauloise or The Raid is considered by many to be the first modern expedition adventure race and was first held in 1989 in New Zealand as "la grande traversée". Its creator, Gérard Fusil, took the existing concept of long distance endura ...

Eco-Challenge ''Eco-Challenge: The Expedition Race'' is a multi-day expedition length adventure race in which teams of four (five in the early years) competed. It originally aired on TV from April 1995 to April 2002. Based closely on the Raid Gauloises advent ...

and

Extreme Games The X Games are an annual extreme sports event organized, produced and broadcast by ESPN. Coverage is also shown on ESPN's sister network, ESPN on ABC, ABC. The inaugural X Games were held during the summer of 1995 in Providence, Rhode Island, ...

. He won the Coast to Coast a record 9 times, more than any other person, in 1990, 1991, and 1997 to 2003. Steve brought increased exposure to the race by surprising the nation and becoming the first nudist on NZ Breakfast TV. He represented New Zealand at the Mountain Bike World Championships twice. Gurney also starred in the New Zealand TV shows "

Clash of the Codes Simon Barnett (born 23 March 1967) is a radio and television host and presenter in New Zealand. Barnett co-hosted the morning show on Christchurch radio station 92 More FM with Gary McCormick until 2018, and previously with Phil Gifford. He has ...

" and "Dancing with the Stars". In 1994, a severe

Leptospirosis Leptospirosis is a blood infection caused by the bacteria ''Leptospira''. Signs and symptoms can range from none to mild (headaches, muscle pains, and fevers) to severe ( bleeding in the lungs or meningitis). Weil's disease, the acute, severe ...

infection caught from bat dung in the

Mulu caves The Gunung Mulu National Park is a national park in Miri Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting. The park is famous for its ca ...

whilst racing in

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...

jungles in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

very nearly cost him his life with respiratory and

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

. His determination and patience allowed him to fight back to full fitness and 7 of his Coast to Coast wins came after this infection. During his racing career Steve heavily used his engineering degree and experience to push at the edges of the rules and possibilities to give himself and his teams a winning edge. Inventing items such as a bike pod, improved kayak seats, anti-chafing solutions and more. Gurney 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 endurance sport in the

2004 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2004 were appointments by some of the 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 ...

Retirement

On 8 August 2007, he announced his retirement from the sport due to a two-year fight with an ankle injury. He said he was disappointed that he could not win a 10th Coast to Coast title and also that he finished his last competitive race in 2nd place. He now presents motivational talks, develops new sports related products and undertakes unique challenges around the world Together with Christchurch adventure racers Steve Moffatt, Gurney recognised the strong talent in

Anton Cooper Anton Cooper (born 11 August 1994) is a New Zealand cross-country cyclist who races for the Trek Factory Racing XC Team. He is the 2015 World Under 23 Cross-country Mountain bike champion and the 2012 World Junior Cross-country Mountain bike ...

, a

cross-country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

cyclist, and organised financial support from various business people. As part of the Mad Way South team Steve holds two world records: *The first crossing of the Sahara Desert by wind power alone *The longest kite buggy, at 2160 km During the journey he experienced a high speed crash, at the time a local hospital reported no broken bones and he continued the journey despite being in significant pain. On returning to New Zealand and completing new scans he discovered he had 4 facial fractures, a 6 cm piece broken from a scapula, a badly torn rotator cuff and a damaged eardrum. He has since fully recovered from all injuries. Gurney lost his home in the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes as it became uninhabitable and the land it was built on became unstable. After helping front a well orchestrated and prolonged battle with local insurance companies he took the opportunity to move to Queenstown, New Zealand's capital of adventure sports.

Bibliography

*Lucky Legs: what I’ve learned about winning & losing *Eating Dirt *The Beginners Guide to Adventure Sport in New Zealand

References

External links

Steve Gurney's motivational talk and news site

Steve's Books and GurneyGears product range

GurneyGoo product range

Sources

Leppin Sport profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurney, Steve New Zealand male triathletes 1963 births Living people Sportspeople from Christchurch Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit