A former Olympic rower hopes there is some honour among thieves after his gold medal was stolen from his Christchurch home while he was away for the weekend. He was yet to return home after the robbery and did not yet know the extent of what had been stolen. "All of that pales [in] comparison to the gold medal." You know, I was a world champion for two years before the Olympics, so it was a whole build-up to winning a gold medal... it was hard fought." Despite having championship medals displayed in his home, it was only the Olympic medal that had been hidden that was stolen.

Source: Otago Daily Times February 02, 2026 06:12 UTC