Francis Douglas Memorial College claim Academy award
New Plymouth rugby mates teaming up for first Coast to Coast
15-year-olds Ollie Wheatley and Lachlan Sorenson have been playing rugby together since they were 7. Now they’re set to take on a new challenge - the Kathmandu Coast to Coast.
The pair from Francis Douglas Memorial College in New Plymouth were recently awarded the 2025 Kathmandu Coast to Coast Academy prize with entries flooding in from secondary schools across the country.
The boys will compete as a team in the Two Day event.
Ollie, who will be tackling the initial cycle stage on day one and the kayak section on the second day, says he’s looking forward to the challenge.
“I’ve been thinking about doing the race for a while so when this opportunity came up I jumped at it”.
The Academy was first established in 2015 to get more young people into multisport with both advice and equipment to help them complete the Kathmandu Coast to Coast.
The prize includes a free entry into the sold-out event, $5000 of gear from the primary sponsor Kathmandu, a Barracuda Kayak for their school and free coaching and mentoring from a Kathmandu Coast to Coast Ambassador.
“Making the Kathmandu Coast to Coast accessible to all ages has been a top priority for many years. We’re able to provide this opportunity to secondary school students thanks to the ongoing support of our race partners” says Race Director Glen Currie.
“It’s awesome to see this next generation of athletes coming through and hopefully they pick up a real love for the sport.”
The initial inspiration for boy’s multisport goals came from Ollie’s Dad Chris Wheatley who first competed in the Kathmandu Coast to Coast in 2018.
“I’m not your typical athlete so it just proves if I can do it anyone can,” Chris said.
“Yeah I’m really proud of both of them. They’re both just really great kids and it’s been awesome to watch them get stuck into training.”
Lachlan says he’s been preparing for the gruelling 30.5km mountain run stage, which traverses the main divide, by running across the rocks at his local Waiwhakaiho beach.
“We’re also planning to spend a bit of time training on Mt Taranaki over the next fews months.”
The pair will join a sold-out field of athletes on 7 February as the Kathmandu Coast to Coast kicks off for it’s 43rd year.
