Athletes > Andrea Hewitt > Bio

On her way up
Nicknamed "Ange," Hewitt was named the International Triathlon Union's rookie of the year in 2006, when she finished the year ranked ninth worldwide. She has five career World Cup podiums to her name, including a 2007 win in Kitzbuehel, Germany. In 2005, she was the junior world champion. Not bad, considering 2005 was the year when she competed in her first ever triathlon, after spending a summer training for a coast to coast multisport event that featured running, cycling, and kayaking. Hewitt's coach John Hellemens convinced her to try a triathlon and she did, entering the New Zealand Nationals.

Training in France
Hewitt is spending the lead-up to the Games training with fellow Olympic triathlete Kris Gemmell and other members of the New Zealand Olympic team at the French National Center for Altitude Training in Font Romeu, France. The center was built prior to Mexico City to simulate the altitude there, as it rests in the Pyrenees between France and Spain. She made a strong showing in early July in competition in France, finishing second in the third round of the French Grand Prix at Beauvais.

Family
Hewitt's father John, an engineer, moved from England to New Zealand in 1971, where he met his future wife and Andrea's mom Margaret, an accounts clerk, while working in Christchurch. The 26-year-old Hewitt has two athletic sisters: oldest Tina, and youngest Sara. Tina won national titles in surf life saving, while Sara played water polo for New Zealand.

Student of money
Hewitt has been active outside the world of elite triathlon, completing a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Canterbury.