Kiwi Olympics legend Hamish Bond announces he's retiring from rowing

After an illustrious career of well over a decade, Hamish Bond has hung up his oar.

Taking to Instagram this morning, the 35-year-old announced his retirement from rowing.

Alongside a video compilation of his years competing in the sport, Bond wrote: "For the past 22 years rowing and elite sport has been a primary focus of my life. Since Tokyo I have been reflecting on my career and am fortunate to call it a day whilst still at the top of my game.

"Thank you to everybody who has been a part of what I have achieved including the New Zealand public who have supported me every step of the way."

Bond made his mark on the rowing world in 2007, claiming a gold medal as part of the coxless four at the world championships in Munich. The quartet also claimed the Team of the Year honours at the 2007 Halberg Awards.

He then got his first taste of the Olympics Games in 2008, with the four winning the B Final.

In 2009, Bond teamed up with Eric Murray to compete in the men's pair, which was the start of a special partnership on the water. In the pair, Bond and Murray won seven world championship gold medals in six years – winning both the coxed and coxless pair in 2014.

The pair also won back-to-back Olympic Gold medals, claiming the title in London in 2012 before defending it in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. They were awarded the Thomas Keller Medal – rowing's highest honour – in 2018 for their spectacular career.

As of 2021, the pair hold the world best times in both the coxed and coxless pairs.

Murray announced his retirement from the sport in 2017, and Bond revealed he would take a break from the sport to instead pursue a cycling career.

But after finding success on the bike – with a Commonwealth Games bronze medal to go with bronze and gold Oceania Championships medals – Bond returned to the water in 2019 as part of the men's eight with the hopes of competing at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

After failing to qualify initially, the men's eight earned their place at a last-chance regatta, before going on to shock many by upsetting Germany and Great Britain to claim the gold medal in Tokyo. It was only New Zealand's second gold in the men's rowing eight, with the first coming in Munich in 1972.

The victory also saw Bond make history as New Zealand's first athlete to win a gold medal at three successive Games.