Ian Seymour

Ian Seymour started rowing in 2002 at Ballarat Grammar School in Australia at the age of 15.

He moved to New Zealand and joined Central Rowing Performance Centre for the 2006/07 summer season. Ian made his first New Zealand team in the 2009 U23 men’s coxed four. In what was a stellar regatta for the team, the four won gold at the World Rowing U23 Championships in Racice, Czech Republic. Following a domestic season with the New Zealand summer squad, Ian was selected as part of the elite men’s sweep team for 2010. After being competitive in the men’s fours at the Lucerne World Rowing Cup, he was selected in the men’s eight for the 2010 World Rowing Championships at Lake Karapiro. The crew finished 5th after nearly upsetting an unbeaten German crew in the heats. Ian came agonisingly close to qualifying the men’s eight for the London Olympic Games when the crew finished just behind the US crew at the last-chance qualification regatta in 2012. He then took a break from the sport.

After rowing for the newly formed Barbarians Rowing Club in 2018, he returned to the men’s sweep squad in 2019 with the same enthusiasm that helped him earn a New Zealand team spot 10 years ago. Ian was in the reserves for the World Rowing Cups before he joined the men’s four for the World Rowing Championships, where they finished 14th.

Off the water Ian is a qualified carpenter.