Caleb Shepherd

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Caleb Shepherd

| image =

| caption =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1993|6|29|df=y}}

| birth_place = Huntly, New Zealand

| height = 1.68 m

| weight = 53 kg

| country = New Zealand

| sport = Rowing

| event = Coxed pair, Eight

| club = Waikato

| medaltemplates=

{{MedalCountry|{{NZL}}}}

}}

Caleb Shepherd (born 29 June 1993) is a New Zealand rowing cox. He holds the world best time in the men's coxed pair (2014) and represented at the Rio Olympics in the New Zealand eight. He coxed the New Zealand women's eight to their 2019 World Championship title and has been twice a world champion.

Private life

Shepherd was born in 1993{{cite web |title=Caleb Shepherd |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/athletes/athlete/39217/shepherd-caleb |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016 |archive-date=3 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803220725/http://www.worldrowing.com/athletes/athlete/39217/shepherd-caleb |url-status=dead }} and is from Huntly. He received his secondary education at Hamilton Boys' High School as a boarder where he started coxing in 2006.{{cite news |last1=Wallace |first1=Caitlin |last2=Goile |first2=Aaron |title=North Waikato rowers selected to compete in Rio Olympics |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/north-waikato-news/77654455/North-Waikato-rowers-selected-to-compete-in-Rio-Olympics |access-date=4 July 2016 |work=Waikato Times |date=23 March 2016}} Shepherd completed a master's degree at the University of Waikato in 2020, with a thesis on depression in autobiographical sports writing.{{cite thesis |last=Shepherd |first=Caleb |year=2020 |type=Masters thesis |title=Depression in autobiographical sports writing: A backstage pass into the dark locker room |publisher=Waikato Research Commons, University of Waikato |hdl=10289/13894 |url=https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/handle/10289/13894}}{{Cite web |title=Caleb Shepherd : RowingNZ |url=https://rowingnz.kiwi/Person?Action=Profile&Person_id=11403 |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=rowingnz.kiwi}} Shepherd wants to become a sports journalist.

Of Māori descent, Shepherd affiliates to the Ngāti Porou iwi.{{cite news | url=http://tvnz.co.nz/te-karere-news/43-m-ori-athletes-head-rio-olympics-6485449 | title=43 Māori athletes to head to Rio Olympics | date=5 August 2016 | work=Te Karere | access-date=6 August 2016}}

Rowing

At the 2011 World Rowing Junior Championships at Dorney Lake, Dorney, England, Shepherd won silver with the junior men's coxed four.{{cite web |title=(JM4+) Junior Men's Coxed Four – Final |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/events/2011-world-junior-championships/junior-mens-coxed-four/final/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016}} At the 2012 World Rowing U23 Championships at Trakai in Lithuania, Shepherd won bronze with the U23 men's coxed four.{{cite web |title=(BM4+) U23 Men's Coxed Four – Final |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/events/2012-under-23-world-rowing-championships/u23-mens-coxed-four/final/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016}} At the 2013 World Rowing U23 Championships at Linz-Ottensheim in Austria, he won gold with the men's eight.{{cite web |title=(BM8+) U23 Men's Eight – Final |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/events/2013-under-23-world-rowing-championships/u23-mens-eight/final/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016}} A year later at the July 2014 World Rowing U23 Championships in Varese, Italy, he won another gold with the same boat.{{cite web |title=(BM8+) U23 Men's Eight – Final |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/events/2014-world-rowing-u23-championships/u23-mens-eight/final/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016}} On 29 August 2014, Shepherd was the cox for Hamish Bond and Eric Murray when they set the world best time in the men's coxed pair at the 2014 World Rowing Championships at Bosbaan, Amsterdam in the final race, thus winning gold.{{cite web |title=(M2+) Men's Coxed Pair – Final |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/events/2014-world-rowing-championships/mens-coxed-pair/final/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |access-date=4 July 2016}} As of 2021 that time still stood as the world's best. He came fourth at the 2015 World Rowing Championships with the men's eight, qualifying the boat for the 2016 Olympics.{{cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Ian |title=New Zealand eights surge into Olympic medal contention at world champs |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/71804995/new-zealand-eights-surge-into-olympic-medal-contention-at-world-champs |access-date=4 July 2016 |work=Stuff |date=7 September 2015}} This is the first time that a New Zealand eight qualified for the Olympics since 1984, despite the famous performance of past eights including the 1982 New Zealand eight.{{cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Ian |title=Young New Zealand men's rowing eight have sights set high at world champs |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/71479652/Young-New-Zealand-mens-rowing-eight-have-sights-set-high-at-world-champs |access-date=3 July 2016 |work=Stuff |date=27 August 2015}} He came sixth with his team at the eights competition in Rio de Janeiro.{{cite news |last1=Alderson |first1=Andrew |title=Rio Olympics 2016: Gold for Mahe Drysdale |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11693366 |access-date=23 October 2016 |work=The New Zealand Herald |date=14 August 2016}}