2018 Legends
MAUREEN CUMMINGS
Maureen Cummings has had a long and storied career in triathlon and is still going strong.
A leading elite triathlete in her heyday, she then transformed into a world class age grouper and is a well known campaigner for the sport.
One of the best known and popular triathletes in the country, Cummings has spent years encouraging athletes of all skill levels in a sport she loves via mentoring, coaching and by example.
Her passion for what was a relatively new sport in the late 80s and early 90s saw Cummings win multiple races, including the Australian Aquathon Championship from 1986-88, numerous Lake Macquarie City Triathlons, the 1994 Sri Chinmoy Sprint and the Australian Sprint Championships in 1993.
Maureen was part of, and made an impact in, the Tooheys Blue series which morphed into an annual world-class triathlon series which attracted the best men and women from around the world.
Off the race course, Cummings actively campaigned for equal prize money for women in triathlons, became involved in coaching and also served on numerous selection committees from 1996 - including for the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
As an age grouper Cummings has come into her own, competing for Australia at numerous world titles and winning her age title at the 2000 Perth world championships.
NICK CROFT
Think of triathlon in the late 1980s and 1990s and Nick Croft is one of the first names to come to mind.
A national aquathlon champion in 1985 at age 17, he won his first triathlon the same year.
It was the first of many - to be precise 35 wins and 30 podiums by the end of his career - with Croft the 1990/91 Australian Triathlon Series “Australian Triathlete of the Year.”
He raced both locally and internationally with rivals including the likes of American big names Mark Allen, Scott Tinley and Mike Pigg and at home Brad Beven, Stephen Foster, Greg Welch and Greg Stewart.
He represented Australia at the first ITU World Championships at Avignon in 1989, won the Beijing International in 1991 and competed professionally on a French team - racing onto the podium at races including the Nice Triathlon and Ironman Lanzarote.
Ill health brought Croft’s professional triathlon career to a halt in 1995 but has remained a permanent fixture in the triathlon community as a coach, and in various TA roles, such as Australian Selector from 1996-2000, TA Junior Elite Manager ITU world Champs in 1998 and TA Weet-Bix Kids Tryathlon Development Program Coordinator between 1999-2003.
LIZ HEPPLE
Liz Hepple was a top Australian cyclist who took on the sport of triathlon - and won. Lots.
This remarkable endurance athlete, who rode and podiumed in the women's version of the Tour de France and competed at the Seoul Olympics, also contested triathlons at the same time.
Liz Hepple – was an Australian cycling representative in 1986 – 88.
This included 3rd place in women’s Tour de France and 1988 Seoul Olympics. She was twice named Australian cyclist of the year.
Her public profile as a leading athlete gave profile to what was a relatively new sport in Australia.
And her sporting prowess earned her immediate success in triathlon, including victory in the first ever Noosa Triathlon in 1983.
More followed, including Australian long and short course titles and an Australian Triathlete of the Year crown.
A triathlon pioneer, Hepple made and left an indelible mark on the sport.
