Grant Kenny

Grant Hayden Kenny OAM (born 14 June 1963) is an Australian former Ironman, surf lifesaver and canoeist.

Grant Kenny
Personal information
Full nameGrant Hayden Kenny
NationalityAustralian
Born (1963-06-14) 14 June 1963
Maryborough, Queensland, Australia
Sport
CountryAustralia
SportCanoe sprint, Ironman surf lifesaving
Medal record
Men's canoe sprint
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place1984 Los AngelesK-2 1000 m

Career

Kenny made headlines in 1980 when, as a 16-year-old, he won both the Australian Junior and Open Iron Man Championship on the same day. Kenny then won the Australian Open Ironman Title for the following three years. He also became a household name in Australia due to his sponsorship deals with Kelloggs Nutri-Grain, and appeared in television commercials for the cereal.

After turning his attention to kayaks in the mid-1980s, Kenny later became an important figure in creating the Uncle Toby's Super Series, which was a ground-breaking professional Iron Man circuit that lasted for 12 years. Kenny was also a competitor in the first two seasons, but by 1989 his other interests had taken away the necessary time to train for such a demanding sport and his results were never anything like his domination during his late teens.

In kayaks, Kenny competed in two Summer Olympics. He won a bronze medal in the K-2 1000 m event with Barry Kelly at Los Angeles in 1984.

Honours

Kenny is a recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia, which he received in 1986 for his service to sport.[1] He has also been awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2000,[2] and the Centenary Medal in 2001,[3] both for his services to the sporting and business world. He was also inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1996.[4]

Personal life

Kenny was married to the Australian Commonwealth swimming champion Lisa Curry in 1986. They had three children, (Jaimi Lee, Morgan and Jett) , with their eldest child dying on 14 September 2020 at age 33, following a long illness,[5] Kenny and his former wife co-own the Curry Kenny Aviation Group, which in 2009 owned approximately 60 aircraft.

On 17 December 2012, it was reported that he and comedian Fifi Box were expecting a child. This was later confirmed, and on 5 April 2013 Beatrix 'Trixie' Beater Box was born.[6][7]

References
  1. It's an Honour Archived 7 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine – Medal of the Order of Australia
  2. It's an Honour Archived 7 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine – Australian Sports Medal
  3. It's an Honour Archived 7 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine – Centenary Medal
  4. "Grant Kenny". Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  5. "Daughter of Lisa Curry and Grant Kenny dies aged 33". The Sydney Morning Herald. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  6. McCullough, James (29 May 2009). "Lisa Curry-Kenny, Grant Kenny separating after 23 years of marriage". The Courier-Mail. Archived from the original on 30 May 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
  7. "Sporting couple Curry and Kenny split". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australian Associated Press. 29 May 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
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