Dame Lisa Carrington

Lisa Carrington

Dame Lisa Carrington DNZM is a world champion kayaker and New Zealand’s most decorated Olympian of all time. She has won nine Olympic medals – eight gold and one bronze – across four consecutive Olympic Games. 
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Lisa, who is of Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki and Ngāti Porou descent, hails from Tauranga and spent much of her childhood in the small town of Ōhope Beach. She has 15 world championship golds to her name. Her total medal haul of 22 includes nine successive K1 200m titles. 

In 2022 Lisa was appointed a Dame Companion to the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to canoe racing. She has won Sportswoman of the Year at the prestigious Halberg Awards four times, and in 2016 she added the Halberg Supreme Award to her name. In 2021, she was named Halberg Sportswoman of the Decade and the most influential Māori Sports Personality of the past 30 years. 

In 2024 Lisa became a published author with the release of her debut children's book, Lisa Carrington Chases a Champion / Ko Lisa Carrington me te Toa Whakaihuwaka. Released in English and Māori language versions, the story is based on Lisa's eight-year-old self and aims to inspire readers to overcome challenges. 

She has a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Politics and Māori Studies, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Psychology, and is studying for a Masters in Psychology. 
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Lisa is passionate about sustainability, the environment, and her Māori heritage – all of which she strives to integrate into her everyday life.

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Lisa Carrington’s SHOCKING Olympics Build-Up - Doubt, Getting The Sh*ts & Breaking WRs in Training

Episode 188

Since we last spoke, Lisa Carrington has won three Olympic gold medals in Paris – bringing her career tally to an astounding eight gold medals – and cementing her place amongst the world’s greatest ever Olympians.

So we had a lot to catch up about.

We talked about the teamwork involved in the K4 triumph, which added another layer to her legacy, smashing world records at training, why she swerved us at the Halberg Awards, the truth about the most difficult year of her career – and how close she came to walking away, training through sickness, her relationship with husband Bucky – and why she makes him a coffee every morning, if she’ll continue in the boat, becoming an author and the most articulate insights into her elite mindset.

This was a really special episode…