Cameron Leslie a swimmer turned rugby player

"I'd love to end up as a food critic one day, the idea of getting paid to eat food really appeals to me."- Cameron Leslie
Talking to Cameron Leslie, it sounded as though the Maori Sports Awards on Saturday night were a bit more physical than you might have expected.
"I'm bloody sore - I have no idea of where my sore ribs came from - but I had to get up this morning anyway and go to (swim) training," he said.
It turns out Leslie's physical woes had nothing to do with the 20th annual Maori Sports Awards ceremony which were largely injury free. The Whangarei 20-year-old picked up the 2010 Disabled Maori sportsperson award for his swimming achievements in the last 12 months but the contact injuries came from his new love; wheelchair rugby.
He has spent the rest of the weekend - when he wasn't training in the pool or attending the awards ceremony in Manukau - at a New Zealand Wheelblacks trial.
"I really love it, it freshens you up and it's so social, I was around people all weekend, having fun with a bit of banter and playing sport," he said.
He said the team, for so long one of the best in the world, has had a rough time of it recently but there are good signs that will change.
"The game's got an exciting future here, we've kind of hit rock bottom already and we've got some really good guys coming through, hopefully they'll go on from here and form a tightknit group that will take them back to the top - like they were in 2004."
The weekend's trial was to showcase the squad's talents in front of a new coach coming on board for the first time.
Almost surprisingly Leslie is aiming at a career in something a lot less physical as a job as he rushes to finish his communications degree at AUT ahead of schedule.
"Magazine journalism is what I'm leaning toward at the moment. I'd love to end up as a food critic one day, the idea of getting paid to eat food really appeals to me," he laughed.
At the moment he's more interested in knocking off his communications degree - ahead of time - so he can prepare properly for the 2012 Paralympics in London.
"I hoping to graduate from university before things get hectic, so I can have about three months lead in (to the games) of solid training," he said.
"The not very fun thing about that is going to summer school this year, there's some catch-up work to do but mostly it's to keep ahead and make sure that graduation thing happens on time - it's tough to give up your summer but in the bigger scheme of things it makes more sense." Leslie remains on track to regain his Beijing Paralympic title after once again winning the 150m Individual Medley at the World Championships in Holland recently.
"I defended my spot at the top of the world again and managed to wipe 0.4 of a second off my world record and although I was just off my personal best pace, there was still plenty of space between me and the next guy," he said.
He is confident he can win gold in London and is also targeting a second medal.
"Everything is already in place really and we're just waiting for it to unfold, things will ramp up in the next 18 months or so, but at the moment training is pretty relaxed, concentrating on skills and fitness," he said.
There is only one major international swim meeting in Canada next year, which frees up his year for his other pursuits.
There is a Wheelblacks development tour he'd like to be in on, as well as the Oceania Championships in Korea. "I'm enjoying both sports at the moment so why not keep going at it until that changes, I haven't really put any thought into what happens after the Olympics and I think I'll keep it that way for now," he said.
MAORI SPORTS AWARDS RECIPIENTS:
The Albie Pryor Maori sportsperson of the year: Hosea Gear (Ngati Porou, Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki), rugby.
Senior Maori sportsman: Hosea Gear.
Senior Maori sportswoman: Joelle King (Ngati Porou), squash.
Junior Maori sportsman: Reuben Te Rangi (Ngapuhi), basketball.
Junior Maori sportswoman: Dayna Maree Turnbull, basketball, touch.
Disabled Maori sportsperson: Cameron Leslie (Ngapuhi), swimming.
Maori sports coach: Stephen Kearney (Te Atiawa), rugby league.
Maori sports administrator: Patricia Rangi (Te Atiawa), hockey;
Maori umpire/referee: Henry Perenara (Ngati Rangitihi), rugby league.
Maori sports team: Maori All Blacks, rugby.
Maori sports media award, Television: Beneath the Maori Moon, Bailey Mackey (Ngati Porou, Ngai Tuhoe), Black Inc Media.