Paris 2024: Q&A with Kiwi canoe sprinter Hamish Legarth

Canoe sprinter and Olympic debutant Hamish Legarth will be in action at the Paris Olympics from August 6.

What’s your first memory of watching the Olympics?

Hamish Carter and Bevan Docherty winning gold and silver in the triathlon at Athens 2004.

Who was an Olympian you admired as a kid?

Usain Bolt.

Was competing at an Olympics a childhood dream or did that come later in life?

I remember William Benson (swimmer at Beijing) came to school to talk about his Olympic journey and one thing that he talked about that stuck out for me was the unlimited McDonald’s in the Olympic Village. Being a young boy, I thought it would be pretty cool to go to the Olympics to experience that. Obviously now my reasons to compete have changed dramatically.

Hamish Legarth and Jan Tinetti at the Prime Minister’s Scholarship Ceremony at Sir Don Rowland’s Centre, Lake Karapiro in October 2023. Photo / Stephen Barker / Photosport

Who’s your New Zealand Olympic GOAT?

Got to be Lisa Carrington.

What’s your favourite performance by a Kiwi at an Olympics?

Lisa’s three gold medals in Tokyo.

What’s your goal for these Games?

To win a medal is the ultimate goal!

Who have been your biggest supporters in aiming for that goal?

Can’t go past my parents. They have been my biggest supporters and facilitators since day one. Even having left home Mum still sends up so many frozen meals to me for an easy feed after trainings!

Do you plan on sticking around to see other events once you’ve finished competing?

For sure. Just unfortunately our event finishes two days before the closing ceremony so not a lot of time to soak in the experience.

If you were there as a fan, which athlete or event would you most like to watch?

There’s going to be a massive showdown in the Women’s K1 500m race with Lisa and Aimee [Fisher], that race will be hard to miss. But away from kayaking, watching the all the big names in the American men’s basketball team in person would be pretty cool.

What are you looking forward to about the athletes’ village?

The food!

Have you visited Paris before and what touristy stuff is on your bucket list?

We spent a couple months training in Paris in 2019 and were there for an Olympic test event last year so have managed to tick off all the tourist destinations. Will have to get another pic under the Eiffel Tower, though.

What’s your favourite French food and is it snails?

Snails are great! Just taste of a whole lot of garlic and butter. I’d have to say a pain au chocolat would be my favourite though.

What’s your immediate plan post-Paris?

Soak up the sun on the beaches in the south of Spain and Portugal.

If you were to pull a Hamish Bond, what would be your second Olympic sport?

Whenever the weather is bad and I walk into the velodrome for gym or physio I’m always so envious of the track cyclists training in their heated environment every day. Just unfortunate the legs aren’t built for that sport.