Tom Murray

Tom Murray started rowing in 2010 at Marlborough Boys’ College and Blenheim Rowing Club. Like many high-school rowers, he initially used the sport to get fit for rugby season, but eventually rowing took precedence. In his final year of high school, Tom won the Boy’s U18 Coxed Four (Springbok Shield) with Marlborough Boys’ College in 2012.

Tom was selected in his first New Zealand team as part of the Junior Coxed Four in 2012 that went on to win Gold at the World Rowing Junior Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. After a summer with Central RPC, he joined the U23 Men’s Eight in 2013 and helped the crew to win back-to-back U23 world titles in 2013 and 2014. The crew then qualified the boat for the 2016 Rio Olympics by placing a close 4th at the 2015 World Rowing Championships. It was the first time in over 30 years that New Zealand had featured in the big boat class at the Olympics. The young Men’s Eight came home in 6th place at the Rio Olympic Games after a competitive showing in the early stages of the race. The year of 2016 Tom also won his first Red Coat, winning the Men’s Premier Pair with Jamie Hunter at the 2016 NZ Rowing National Championships.

In 2017 Tom linked up with Jamie Hunter to form a Men’s pair combination. The duo won gold at World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland, and earned a Bronze medal at the World Rowing Championships in Sarasota, Florida. In 2018 Tom was joined in the Men’s Pair by Michael Brake, with whom he had previously rowed in the Men’s Eight and his original Junior Coxed Four. The pair won Gold at World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne and finished 5th at the World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

In 2019 Tom returned to the pair with Michael Brake: where they achieved Silver at World Rowing Cup II, bronze at World Rowing Cup III, and a Silver medal at the World Rowing Championships.

The pair went back to the big boat of the Men’s Eight in 2021, then after only securing a boat for Tokyo via the last-chance qualification regatta in Lucerne in May, the Men’s Eight (with Tom at 3 seat) went on to reclaim the title after a near 50-year wait in an exhilarating final by winning Olympic Gold. A phenomenal achievement for Tom and his crew. 

Tom made an outstanding comeback to international rowing in 2023 after being unable to compete for more than a year. He was selected alongside Ollie Maclean, Matt MacDonald and Logan Ullrich in the 2023 Elite Men’s Coxless Four. The crew made an impressive start to their international campaign, claiming bronze at World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland, before going on to win another bronze medal at the 2023 World Rowing Championships in Serbia.

In 2024, Tom enjoyed a strong domestic racing season, winning North Island titles in both the Men’s Pair and Men’s Four before going on to claim the National Championship title in the Men’s Eight. He was also re-selected into the Men’s Four for the 2024 international racing season, with the crew remaining unchanged from the four that had won bronze at the 2023 World Championships.

The crew continued to build throughout the international season, winning silver at World Cup II before claiming gold at World Cup III. These results provided strong momentum heading into the Paris Olympic Games. Tom and his crew continued their success at the 2024 Olympics, finishing second in the Men’s Four and winning the silver medal. This was a significant achievement for Tom and marked his second Olympic medal.

Following the 2024 Olympic Games, Tom took some well-deserved time away from rowing while recovering from an ankle injury. He has since returned to training at Lake Karāpiro and is preparing to resume full-time training as part of the 2026–27 Summer Squad, with a focus on the domestic racing season.

Away from the water, Tom is an avid Star Wars fan and has recently taken up archery, which he enjoys in his spare time.