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| Human Interest | |
|---|---|
Further Personal Information | |
| Residence | Sydney, NSW, AUS |
General Interest | |
| Injuries | He injured his hamstring in April 2012 while competing at the Stawell Gift race in Victoria, Australia. (theaustralian.com.au, 15 May 2012) He underwent back surgery in January 2010 and his season was disrupted as he recovered from the operation. (heraldsun.com.au, 01 Sep 2010) He underwent emergency surgery in May 2008 to remove his appendix while training in the United States. (Daily Telegraph, 21 May 2008) |
| Other sports | He represented Western Australia at the 1996 and 1998 national boxing championships, and was also amateur state champion. (johnsteffensen.com.au, 14 May 2013) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | His parents took him to an athletics club, hoping it would help burn off some of his excess energy. |
General Interest | |
| Hero / Idol | US boxers Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson and Evander Holyfield, Australian sprinter Peter Norman. (Athletics Australia, 12 Jul 2004) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | John Smith |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | He took up athletics at age seven. |
International Debut | |
| Year | 2003 |
| Competing for | Australia |
| Tournament | World Championships |
| Location | France |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete, Coach |
| Languages | English |
General Interest | |
| Nicknames | Steffo (asics.com.au, 05 Jul 2012) |
| Other information | SUSPENSION In January 2013 he was suspended for six months by Athletics Australia [AA] for bringing the sport into disrepute. This followed claims he had made of racism in athletics and public allegations against AA chief executive officer Dallas O'Brien after he was not selected for the Australia team at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. The ban included both domestic and international competitions, and also took into account a three-month suspension Steffensen had received in 2010 for similar offences. (theage.com.au, 31 Jan 2013; theaustralian.com.au, 31 Jan 2013) CLEARED In January 2008 he was cleared by an Athletics Australia [AA] tribunal of any wrongdoing after selector Glynis Nunn-Cearns lodged an official complaint about his behaviour. Independent investigator Phillip Dwyer examined the complaint on behalf of AA and concluded Steffensen should not be punished for the incident. (Fox Sports, 16 Jan 2008) EARLY DAYS He began his athletics career as a long jumper before concentrating on sprinting. (elitesports.com.au, 20 Aug 2007) |
| Awards and honours | In 2012 he was named Little Athletics Australia Ambassador to encourage youngsters to participate in the sport. (lavic.com.au, 01 Mar 2013) |