Rowers sign up with Mazda
Champion rowers Brooke Francis and Lucy Spoors have become Mazda ambassadors.
Both internationally recognised, the New Zealand athletes share similar life highlights over the past few years.
Spoors achieved silver medal success at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics as part of the women’s eight. Two years later, she and her fiancee welcomed baby Rupert to the world.
Francis was a women’s double scull silver Olympic medallist in 2020 before also welcoming a new baby in 2022, daughter Keira.
Between them, they have achieved four World Championships, eight World Cup victories and, most recently, bronze at the World Coastal Championships.
With their shared bond of being new mothers and champion athletes, they formed a partnership in the women’s double scull to secure a gold medal in their pinnacle event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
“The build-up ahead of any international competition is a big undertaking in itself and doing it as a new mum added a whole new layer of things to consider,” says Spoors, pictured above.
“Brooke and I could totally share and understand the challenges we were working through, and that understanding made our journey to Paris all the more possible.”
Spoors and Francis are driving new CX-60 plug-in hybrids during their Mazda partnership.
Based in Cambridge, their trip to training at Karapiro can be achieved using only electric power, with longer journeys out of town and to events supported by the CX-60’s petrol engine.
Francis, pictured below, says: “We love our Mazda and have always been impressed by the way it drives and, even more importantly now with a family, the safety features and practicality.”
David Hodge, Mazda NZ’s managing director, says: “Brooke and Lucy are incredible people. They are among the world’s best in their sport, have both juggled parenthood while remaining at elite level, and have done it all with Kiwi humility and attitude. They are remarkable role models.”
As part of their role as ambassadors, they will collaborate and feature in Mazda NZ marketing activity, as well as supporting the brand in their local community.
