Mark Hunter  won an amazing gold alongside lightweight scull partner Zac Purchess at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Olympic Gold rounded off a perfect year for Mark Hunter who ended the season undefeated and the accolade of World and Olympic Champion.

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View Mark Hunter's Team GB Profile

BIOGRAPHY

World Class Olympic athlete and popular motivational speaker, Mark Hunter has proved himself the greatest Olympic Lightweight Britain has ever produced. After finishing in the top three at the World Championships this past year, Mark has become one of Britain's only athletes ever to have won a world-class medal in a Lightweight Olympic event.

Mark's rowing legacy began at age 14 when he joined Poplar Blackwall & District Rowing Club in London. His ambition to represent Britain and strike gold at the Olympics took hold at an early age. After many years of hard work and determination, Mark was cordially invited to join Leander Rowing Club, the most successful and prestigious rowing club in the world. In 2005 he was elected Captain of Leander and maintained his reign for three consecutive terms as an admired and brilliantly victorious captain.

Mark has competed and championed all levels of rowing and made history in doing so. He began his impressive career by winning a national title in 1994 at the age of 16. Mark set a championship record and was sought after to represent Great Britain in the U16 Team. The following year, he won two Fawley Cup titles at Henley Royal Regatta and represented Britain in the World Junior Championships in the quadruple sculls.

As though representing Great Britain at an international level were not challenging enough, Mark decided to change disciplines in 2000 and went from heavyweight to lightweight rowing. The turn of the century brought unforeseen difficulty to Mark's career path. The change in lifestyle, eating habits, and nutrition were a seemingly insurmountable challenge for a full time athlete training 7 days a week, 6 hours a day. Instead of gaining weight, he was forced to loose weight, starving for weeks before any dreaded weigh-in preceding racing events.

Yet, with the mental endurance of a champion, Mark Hunter went from 85kg to 72kg in record time and quickly established himself as the paramount athlete in his new class. He was immediately recruited to join the GB lightweight team in 2001 and led his boat to victory, finishing in the top five at the World Championships in Lucerne.

When off the water, in addition to maintaining a busy schedule as a popular after-dinner and motivational speaker, Mark is absorbed in his work as a Waterman & Lighterman of the River Thames, a position very few are ever able to achieve. As a Waterman, he competed and won the renowned Millennium Coat and Badge Race, establishing him self as a historic legacy in Fishmongers Hall for century's to come.

In addition to his Olympic success, Mark Hunter won a total of three World Cup medals in 2007 alone. He finished his 2007 season with strength and determination by winning an impressive bronze medal at the World Rowing Championships in Munich. In doing so, Mark qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and built himself a reputation second to none by bringing home Great Britain's first ever Lightweight Olympic class medal.

2008 has been a spectacular year for Mark Hunter.  Alongside lightweight scull partner Zac Purchase they remained unbeaten throughout the year achieving the accolade of World and Olympic Champion.

GB COMPETITIVE RECORD

Olympic Games

2008    1st    Lightweight Double Sculls

2004     13th    Llightweight four

World Rowing Championships

2007     bronze   lightweight double scull

2006     8th        lightweight double

2005     7th        lightweight double

2003     11th      lightweight four

2002     12th      lightweight four

2001     5th        lightweight eight

World Rowing U23 Championships

1999     8th        double scull

1998     9th        double scull

1997     10th      quadruple scull

World Rowing Junior Championships

1996     8th        quadruple scull

1995     7th        quadruple scull

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