Human Interest |
General Interest |
Hobbies |
Surfing. (sportingpulse.com, 04 Feb 2013) |
Sport Specific Information |
Preferred position / style / stance / technique |
Midfield |
International Debut |
Year |
2001 |
Competing for |
Australia |
Further Personal Information |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English |
General Interest |
Sporting philosophy / motto |
"Don't lose the social aspect of the sport." (Hockey Australia, 28 Jun 2004) |
Hero / Idol |
US basketball player Michael Jordan, Australian tennis player Pat Rafter, US surfer Kelly Slater. (sportingpulse.com, 04 Feb 2013; Hockey Australia, 23 Oct 2007) |
Sport Specific Information |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began playing hockey at age nine. |
International Debut |
Location |
Australia |
General Interest |
Injuries |
He broke his collarbone in a training accident in 2005 and was forced to miss that year's Champions Trophy in Chennai, India. (Hockey Australia, 09 Dec 2005)
He missed the entire 2000 season due to injury. (sportingpulse.com, 04 Feb 2013; Hockey Australia, 20 Jan 2006) |
Memorable sporting achievement |
Winning gold at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, winning the 2010 World Cup in Delhi, India. (ausport.gov.au, 06 Sep 2013; Hockey Australia, 23 Oct 2007) |
Awards and honours |
He was named the 2005 Australian Hockey League [AHL] Player of the Year. (Hockey Australia, 02 Feb 2006)
He was awarded an Order of Australia Medal [OAM] in 2005 after winning gold at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. (Hockey Australia, 02 Feb 2006) |
Most influential person in career |
His parents, and one of his childhood neighbours. (qld.gov.au, 24 Oct 2007) |
International Debut |
Opponent |
New Zealand |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Perth, WA, AUS |
Sport Specific Information |
Club / Team |
Queensland Blades: Australia |
Why this sport? |
"My two older brothers and mates played. My neighbourhood was sports mad, and I love team sports." |
Handedness |
Left |
International Debut |
Tournament |
Junior World Cup |
Sport Specific Information |
Name of coach |
Matthew Wells [club], AUS; Graham Reid [national], AUS; Paul Gaudoin [national], AUS |
General Interest |
Nicknames |
Rob (Twitter profile, 23 Jul 2013) |
Other information |
SURFING ACCIDENT In May 2013 he almost drowned following a surfing accident in Perth, WA, Australia. He was knocked unconscious and disappeared under the water before he was rescued by a man who had been walking on the beach and other surfers. He spent two days in hospital recovering. "He was lucky someone saw him and some other surfers pulled him out. It's a freaky thing. He had a lung full of sand and water but he's a pretty tough, resilient sort of guy. It's a nasty experience and we're very thankful it wasn't worse," coach of the Australian men's hockey team Ric Charlesworth said. (smh.com.au, 29 May 2013) |