Riley Fitzsimmons

Riley Fitzsimmons has been an apprentice in more ways than one. The surf lifesaving champion started kayaking to improve his surf ski skills and off the water, he’s studied a carpentry and construction apprenticeship.

Riley credits Olympic bronze medallist Lachlan Tame as his greatest influence, with the ‘master’ kayaker and Avoca Beach SLSC teammate responsible for teaching Fitzsimmons how to paddle.

With dreams of going to the Olympic Games, Riley turned to kayaking in 2012 but continues to compete for Avoca Beach SLSC and amongst others, took out the men's surf ski world title at the 2018 Lifesaving World Championships.

In 2015, he partnered with Jordan Wood and won the K2 1000 metres gold at the U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships.  

Riley debuted on the Australian senior canoe sprint team in the same year and went on to make his Olympic debut the following year at Rio 2016.

Riley and Jordan put themselves on the Rio radar when they won the first Grand Prix regatta of the 2016 season. The duo defeated 2015 World Championships Australian silver medallists and mentor, Tame and triple Olympian, Ken Wallace.

At Rio 2016, Riley teamed up with Ken, Jordan and Jacob Clear in the K4 1000m. The crew went down fighting in the final to finish fourth behind Germany, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

"Coming fourth made it really difficult to find the motivation to get back in the boat and do it all again, after you've given your all and come away empty-handed," Riley said.

But he was able to dig deep and get back into the water and in 2017, experienced success at the World Championships winning gold in the K4 1000 metres with Jordan, Ken and Murray Stewart.

The same year, Riley and Jordan also won K2 1000 bronze at the Under 23 World Championships.

In 2019, Riley won gold in the K4 500 at his final Under 23 World Championships and went on to finish fifth in the men's K2 1000 together with Jordan at the World Championships, securing Australia an Olympic quota spot in the process.

Riley with his long-term K2 partner and 'best mate', Jordan, won their selection to Tokyo when they claimed K2 1000 gold at the 2020 Australian Championships in a time of 3:12.04, with the duo overcoming newcomers Tom Green and Jean van der Westhuyzen who finished second by a 1.05sec margin.

Riley made his second Olympic appearance at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games, competing in the K2 1000m discipline alongside Jordan and in the K4 500m event with Lachlan, Jordan and Murray.

In the K2 Jordan and Riley finished their quarter-final in first place, but coming last in the semi-finals saw them go to the B Finals, no longer in medal contention and finished 13th overall.

Competing in the K4 500m, they went deeper into the event to qualify for the A Final as a top-two finisher in their semi-final alongside Spain. With a time of 1:25.025 in the A Final, they earned sixth place.

Riley took a year away from competition after the Tokyo Olympics to rest, reset and refocus his goals. It brought him back to the sport with a new enthusiasm.

“I think it was really good for me to be out of that environment for a year, get back to working, enjoying life and come back to the sport with a fresh mindset of being really grateful of what we’re able to do every single day,” Riley said.

At the 2023 Canoe Sprint World Cup in Poznan, Poland, Riley teamed up with Pierre van der Westhuyzen, Jackson Collins and Noah Havard to win silver in the K4 500m. Shortly afterwards, they finished fourth at the world titles in Duisburg, Germany.

Riley described the results as “a positive step in the right direction” for Paris.

“It’s super special putting on the green and gold. As soon as you slip on that singlet and the racing bib and you’ve got the coat of arms on your chest, you’re thinking about what your journey looked like, the process it took to get to this point,” he said.

“I still have my number one goal of winning an Olympic medal and that’s what I’m still striving for every single day that I turn up to training ... I’m pushing myself to be better."

The third time at the Olympics proved to be the charm for Riley, who 12 years after his Olympic debut collected a silver medal in the K4 500m with Pierre, Jackson and Noah.

It was nearly gold, as a photo finish with the defending Olympic champions Germany saw them place second by just 0.04 of a second.

“I’ve sat on that dock and been bitterly disappointed with not picking up anything,” Riley said.

“So to come away with a silver medal, I’m so proud of how much hard work and sacrifice we’ve put in and to come away with something.”

Not since London 2012 had an Australian men's K4 team won an Olympic medal.