Welcome Break for Hall After a Golden Year

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Welcome Break for Hall After a Golden Year

Auckland, 27 September, 2010: New Zealand’s latest Olympic gold medallist is looking forward to visiting New Plymouth later this week for two different reasons.

Adam Hall, winner of the men’s standing slalom at the Winter Paralympics in March earlier this year, joins Halberg Trust Founder and 1960 Gold Medal winner Sir Murray Halberg at the Westpac Halberg Celebrity Sporting function in New Plymouth on Thursday.

With little opportunity for downtime, Adam is looking forward to the speaking road show as one of the few times he has a break from his rigorous daily routine. “If I’m not on the snow, I’m in the gym, if I’m not in the gym, I’m studying. I don’t really have any downtime,” he says.

For as long as he can remember, 21 year old Adam has settled for back to back winters, travelling from Otago his home province, to Colorado, USA, in the New Zealand summer, then back here when winter hits our slopes. Adam said the Paralympics were a fantastic experience, but it will be nice to have a break. “I’d trained so hard that I went in there knowing I only wanted to come away with gold. It was difficult at times but now I get to look forward to seeing New Zealand.”

He is also looking forward to the Westpac sponsored road show because he gets to share the stage with Sir Murray Halberg, who 50 years ago, struck gold at the 1960 Rome Olympics. “Sir Murray is such and inspiration, and I am thrilled to be able to follow Sir Murray’s recount of his golden glory, with my own.”

After falling during his final run at the 2010 Paralympics in Vancouver, Adam’s hopes of bringing home New Zealand’s only Paralympic gold medal seemed lost. “I got up as quickly as possible and finished the race. Some athletes would have pulled out, never knowing what could have happened,” he says. “I wasn’t going to spend the next four years wondering ‘what if’.”

The New Plymouth lunch is one of six Westpac Celebrity Sporting events around the country, planned by the Halberg Trust, linking together 50 years of gold medal success. Other centres hosting the Celebrity Sporting lunches are Invercargill, 28 October and Christchurch, 26 November, with a breakfast in Hamilton on October 7. Golf events will be staged in Queenstown and Wellington in the New Year.

It was on September 2 in 1960 when Sir Murray shared his golden afternoon with Sir Peter Snell, Snell winning first in the 800m final, followed 45 minutes later by Sir Murray who proved too strong for a high class field in the 5000m final.

Tickets to the Westpac Halberg Celebrity Sporting function in New Plymouth on Thursday at $60 each are still available. To book tickets, contact the Halberg Trust on 0800 HALBERG or office@halberg.co.nz.

ENDS

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