Head Coach - Axel Dickinson

Coming from New Zealand, I started my rowing out of the Petone Rowing Club on the Wellington Harbour in 2005 and have remained a member ever since, gaining life member status in 2016. Rowing has taken me all over the World as a late bloomer representing New Zealand at U23 and Elite level over the years. My first stint coaching was in 2012-13 after gaining an U23 bronze medal as I sat out a season due to a broken wrist I had sustained during training for Worlds. I caught the coaching bug and since then, even once returning to High Performance Rowing, knew this would be my path.

My competitive rowing culminated in being the travelling alternate for the NZ team at the Rio Olympics. Originally part of the NZ 4- my crew was embroiled in the Russian doping scandal in which we would have been racing had the Russians been banned. Post Rio I returned to Petone and spent the last 2 seasons coaching a small, successful group there with most the athletes I’ve coached in 2013, 2016, 2017 moving on to National representation at Junior, U21, U23, Elite level and/or taking athletic scholarships to the USA.

My pet project now is a club I have started up (Barbarians RC), a proxy club with the intention of opening a pathway for former National Representatives to come back to the sport on a social level, give back to the sport and potentially reignite their desire to give it another crack at the top. Our inaugural season culminated in competing at Henley 2018.