Time out for Tom after silver lining in Paris

Double Olympic medallist Tom Murray plans to take a year off and, given his recent efforts, he’s certainly earned it.

In Paris on Thursday night (NZT), he underlined his status as one of this country’s finest-ever oarsmen, teaming with his New Zealand men’s four crewmates Matt Macdonald, Logan Ullrich and Oliver Maclean to claim a silver medal at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

It was Tom’s second Olympic medal, he and Macdonald being part of the gold medal-winning Kiwi eight in Tokyo three years ago.

The Kiwi four finished just .85 of a second behind the gold medallists USA, having chased them all the way down the 2000m course.

Speaking from Paris, Tom said, “We aimed to put on a show.”

“It was just cool to be a part of such close racing … unfortunately not the gold, but only one crew can get it and the Americans were simply better.”

Tom said the NZ camp were always wary of the Americans, who, like the Kiwis, went straight to the final without having to battle through a repechage.

“We have been up against them all season, and last year as well. We are familiar with the crew, who are all great racers, so we knew they were going to be the ones to watch coming down.”

He said, in hindsight, the NZ four may have let the USA boat get too far ahead at the start.

“Then we had to work really hard to catch them up … and we just about caught them at the end, but they had more left at the back end than us. That’s sport though, isn’t it?”

As they entered the final stages Tom said he was unaware of the relative positions of the other crews.

“I knew [the USA boat] was right beside us but I had no idea where anyone else was. You have people lining the bank from the K and it starts to get really loud … by the time you hit the 500-to-go mark it is just a wall of noise. I don’t think I have experienced noise like that at a rowing event.

"And, at that point you just go for it. Everything you have got left you are putting down in that last 300. It doesn’t matter if you are in the race for gold with 10 other people or if it is just you and the Americans, or if you are out there by yourself, you are just closing your eyes and trying to swing as hard as you can on [your oar].”

While obviously disappointed not to reach the top of the podium, while being “so close, yet so far”, Tom said the four had reflected on their journey so far and he described it as “a testament to our resilience”.

“Silver is an amazing accomplishment in itself. As a four we have had some really hard training blocks, some messy stuff, some really low patches when things weren’t gelling … so to think we could get any medal would be outstanding.

“Our first row was ‘oh, s..t, what have we signed up for here’ but we have persevered and knuckled through it. So, to be out there strongly challenging for gold at the Olympics, after only 13 months together, is really special and not everybody can get it … that’s one of the things I love about the sport.”

With another sporting triumph under his belt, Marlborough’s most-decorated Olympian had no hesitation about outlining his immediate future.

“I’m going to take a year off, for sure … might put on some weight, chuck on some rugby boots, do something different just to break the mould for a bit, then just see where I am sitting after that. I’m definitely not going to rush back into things – maybe do a road trip, nothing is set in stone for the next 12 months, I’m excited to not have a set routine.”

But, the 30-year-old, three-time Olympian is certainly not ruling out a tilt at a fourth Games.

“The body is a bit more resilient as I am getting older and I am still loving the sport.”

A change for LA in 2028 is the shift to 1500m races instead of the usual 2K events, a situation Tom will review, but he says, “as long as I am still enjoying it, I don’t see any reason to find anything else to do”.

Those words suggest there is yet more to come from the young man who took up the oars at Marlborough Boys’ College in an endeavour to get fit for his first love, rugby, a decision that Marlborough and New Zealand rowing will be forever grateful for.