Off the Beaten Track with Australia’s Evan O’Hanlon

The T38 sprinter won two golds at London 2012 and will aim to win more at Rio 2016. 07 May 2016
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A picture of a man celebrates the victory after crossing the line

O'Hanlon crosses the line to win gold in the Men's 100m - T38 Final at the London 2012 Paralympic Games

ⒸGetty Images
By IPC

“You can see how the attitude people have in the sporting world is easily transferable to the business side of things – just working hard and wanting to be better all the time; not resting and saying ‘We are doing well,’ but instead ‘What can we do better?’”

In May’s ‘Off the Beaten Track’ we find out what Australia’s Evan O’Hanlon gets up to when he is not focussing on the defence of his Paralympic titles.

The six-time world champion, who missed out on last year’s World Championships due to injury, certainly enjoys his coffee – put on the kettle, make your own and find out more.

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Australian sprinter Evan O’Hanlon knows how to mix business with pleasure.

Like many athletes, the five-time Paralympic champion enjoys relaxing with family and friends over a coffee. But unlike other athletes, he has taken it to the next level.

Alongside his wife Zuzana, a former Olympic race walker, the couple run their own coffee shop in Canberra, Australia, called Superfine Café. Opening their own establishment seemed a logical step to take.

“As athletes you always have that little bit of time in the day, and you also want to feel better, which coffee does for you, so you hang around in coffee shops a lot,” explained O’Hanlon, who won Paralympic gold in the 100m and 200m T38 in world record time at London 2012.

“Then, when I first met Zuzi in 2010 we hung around in coffee shops a lot. We really got into coffee together.”

A hamstring injury put paid to Zuzana’s hopes of competing at the Olympic Games in 2012; soon after she retired from sport and began working as a barista.

“Pretty quickly she realised she was doing a good job and making a lot of money for someone else, so why not try and do it for yourself,” explained O’Hanlon.

It was not a decision they took lightly - the pair began thinking about opening their own business towards the end of 2013, then finally took the plunge a year later.

“Sourcing the coffee was probably one of the easiest things for us because we have a number of friends in the industry,” said O’Hanlon.

“The business side of things was more difficult – there was a lot of research there. That’s why it took nearly a year to set up the business.

“We are both athletes who have lived athletes’ lives since we left high school, so to learn how the business world operates was pretty difficult.”

In fact, when it comes to running the business, O’Hanlon readily admits that it is his wife who shoulders much of the workload.

“Do I have a business head? No – my wife does pretty much everything, she’s pretty damn good at it. I help her as much as possible,” said the 28-year-old.

“For Zuzi it’s really good because she’s finished being an athlete, and she moved straight in to something else that was quite tough and personally challenging.

“You can see how the attitude people have in the sporting world is easily transferable to the business side of things – just working hard and wanting to be better all the time; not resting and saying ‘We are doing well,’ but instead ‘What can we do better?’”

Despite the challenges faced with running your own business, O’Hanlon knows there are many plus points – not least spending valuable time with his wife – the couple married in December last year.

“For me it’s a bit of a distraction but most of the time it’s positive because I have something else to think about and somewhere to go and get lunch and have coffee, and I actually get to see my wife at the same time.”

It’s clear they take great pride in the coffee they serve – although O’Hanlon acknowledges that there is always more to learn.

“I wouldn’t say I’m a coffee geek, because I know a lot of people that know a lot more than me. It’s exactly like sport – the more you get in to it and think you are an expert, the easier it is to see what you don’t know.”

While O’Hanlon may not yet be a coffee geek, he makes sure he doesn’t have to settle for second best, even when he’s away from home.

“Me and Suzi always both travel with our own coffee, just in case there is no access to good coffee, because you don’t want to see us when we’re not drinking coffee!”

As for what he prefers, O’Hanlon likes his coffee black – a double espresso. Just don’t be surprised if he brings his own.

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Sport fans from around the world can now buy their Paralympic tickets for Rio 2016 from authorised ticket resellers (ATRs).

The IPC’s Global ATR is Jet Set Sports, and Rio 2016 tickets and packages can be purchased on the CoSport website.

Residents of Brazil can buy 2016 Paralympics tickets directly from the Rio 2016 website.