Judge Arthur Tompkins with the Aotea College Kathmandu Coast to Coast Academy team, from left, Axel af Klercker (kayak), Toby Devine, Tom Gibbs, and Ryan Tait. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Judge Arthur Tompkins with the Aotea College Kathmandu Coast to Coast Academy team, from left, Axel af Klercker (kayak), Toby Devine, Tom Gibbs, and Ryan Tait. Photo / Mark Mitchell
A group of Porirua students mentored by a judge to do the gruelling Coast to Coast have won their category - despite one of their members suffering a painful injury and limping to the finish line.
Tom Gibbs, 16, tripped on a root and fell on a hazardous section of the track towards the end of the race, and ended up limping 9km to the finish line with torn hip ligaments.
"It was on the last part of the run, I was getting quite tired," said the Aotea College student, who took part in the competition last weekend.
Tom fell down the steep track, landing on the front of his left hip.
"I tried running on it which is what made it worse.
"Getting back to the finish was probably the hardest part of the entire race ... too much effort was put into getting into the race and doing the race to give up, so that was my motivation".
Tom was "so relieved" when he reached the end of his brutal final 9km.
"When I got to the last 200m everybody was cheering me on and clapping and everything, so I knew I couldn't stop there."
He is expected to take six weeks to recovery from the injury.
Ryan Tait (left), Axel af Klercker, Tom Gibbs and Toby Devine were excited to meet Richie McCaw at the Coast to Coast last weekend. Photo / Supplied
Tom and his teammates, Axel af Klercker, 17, and Ryan Tait, 17, were able to tackle the 243km race from the west to the east of the South Island with the help of District Court judge Arthur Tompkins.
He had the idea to get in touch with Aotea College principal Kate Gainsford, who he went to university with about 35 years ago, and offer his mentorship to the students.
He has competed in the past seven Coast to Coast races.
The boys also received support from Kathmandu, the event's main sponsor.
Their fellow student, 16-year-old Toby Devine, also joined in as the kayaker for the school's staff team.
Tompkins said it was a "good buzz" seeing the boys not only complete the race but win the three-person male students category.
He recalled seeing Tom "take off into the hills like a cut cat" in the running section of the race and believed he would have made it in a particularly fast time had he not injured himself.
He could see Tom's GPS tracker stop not far from the finish, then begin to move much slower.
"He came into view down the finish line ... obviously in an enormous amount of pain.
"There were marshals on the course, he could have just given up and been evacuated out."
Tompkins said the weather was perfect for the race, although the river was low, making it difficult for the kayakers.
Judge Arthur Tompkins with the Aotea College Kathmandu Coast to Coast Academy team, from left, Axel af Klercker (kayak), Toby Devine, Tom Gibbs, and Ryan Tait. Photo / Mark Mitchell
He said the boys were "buzzing" after finishing.
Tompkins hoped to make it an annual event for students from the school to attend the Coast to Coast, and was looking at setting up a girls team for next year.
It was "hugely satisfying" to see the boys make it to the race.
"There were a number of times during last year when I was feeling 'maybe we're not going to get this thing to the start line', but I have to say my judicial colleagues came through with a lot of donations, so that was a real buzz."
Tompkins was always keen this would not be something the students could only do if they could pay for it themselves.
"We want it to be something which anybody who is prepared to commit to training and work can do, irrespective of what their personal circumstances are. I think we achieved that."
