Rex Wilson (runner)

Rex Wilson
Personal information
Full nameRex Albert Wilson
Born (1960-04-10) 10 April 1960 (age 66)
Whanganui, New Zealand
Height1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight62 kg (137 lb)

Rex Albert Wilson (born 10 April 1960 in Whanganui) is a retired New Zealand long-distance runner, who represented his native country at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. There he finished in 16th place in the men's marathon, clocking 2:15:51. He set his personal best (2:10:48) in the classic distance in 1990.

In 1990, Wilson was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.

After his Olympic career came to a close he became a volunteer firefighter, something he continues to this day as chief. On this experience he has said "people say they do it for the community, but I do it for me."

He also runs a jewellery store in Paihia with his wife. They has been the victim of several ram raids.

After Wilson was diagnosed with stage four cancer in mid 2022, 15 years to the month after he raised $15,052 for cancer research. He had a robot remove his prostate.

He has a daughter.

Achievements

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  New Zealand
1990 Commonwealth Games Auckland, New Zealand 7th Marathon 2:13:48
1992 Olympic Games Barcelona, Spain 16th Marathon 2:15:51

References

  1. ↑ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Rex Wilson". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 4 December 2016.
  2. ↑ Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 398. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
  3. 1 2 "Paihia fire chief Rex Wilson honoured for 25 years' service". Archived from the original on 5 November 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  4. ↑ "Salvation Army van used in Paihia watch theft". www.stuff.co.nz. Archived from the original on 5 November 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  5. ↑ Graaf, Peter de. "Three arrests after ram raid on fire chief's Paihia gift shop". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  6. ↑ "Bay News: Raising money for cancer treatment; books for kids". Archived from the original on 5 November 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  7. ↑ Ali, Imran. "Only way is up for Paihia crew". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 5 November 2025. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  8. ↑ "Supporting Rex on his journey to fight cancer".