London bronze medallist and IAS Graduate Kieran Govers refuses to believe next year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro looms as his international swansong. As brother Blake, also an IAS Graduate, burst into the Kookaburras squad in stunning style, Kieran continues to have regular injections after undergoing numerous surgeries for a degenerating hip problem. Still more than a year away, the Govers brothers are already eyeing the chance to join the ranks of Great Britain’s Brownlee brothers as family members to win medals at the same Olympics in Brazil. The 27-year-old knows he’s on borrowed time, given surgeons told him six years ago he had four years of professional hockey left. However, Kieran believes he can continue in the Australian squad after competing at a second Olympics. “I’m on a restricted training program and that is going to continue,” he said. “Hopefully it will get me through to Rio and beyond without having another injury. “I was a bit battered after playing through my first full tournament back [in Belgium], so it’s a good chance to get some rest, it’s been a long, hard road. “I’ve done a lot of work with my doctors and the team medical staff in regard to rehab, so I’m feeling pretty good at the moment.” As Australia booked a place at Rio De Janeiro with the WHL triumph in Belgium, Kieran and Blake are at contrasting stages of their international careers. Kieran’s program includes platelet and plasma injections into his hip to prevent further degeneration of the socket. He has undergone multiple surgeries to reshape the joint and avoid a premature end to his career. More recently, he has had to overcome a related hamstring problem to be fit in time to play in Belgium. However, his ongoing fitness concerns haven’t stopped him from returning to the field in a cameo for junior club Albion Park. Kieran scored two and Blake three in an 8-1 demolition of Dapto on Sunday. The Govers brothers are on the cusp of a shot at joining an elite club. Alistair (gold) and Jonathan Brownlee (bronze) won medals in the triathlon event at London, the latest of a rare accomplishment where family members stand on the same Olympic dais. Brother Blake announced himself as a force to be reckoned with on the world stage after finishing as the leading goalscorer in the campaign which finished with the Kookaburras’ thrilling last-minute victory over the hosts Belgium last month. After turning 19 last month, Blake is poised to move to Perth to join the elite training squad in coming weeks, a step closer to realising his Olympic dream. Kieran declared Blake looms as one of the Kookaburras’ biggest weapons in their bid to turn London bronze into Rio gold. “He’s got a taste of what it’s like now,” Kieran said of his brother. “He’s a world-class flicker [drag flick] and when he’s on, he is very hard to stop.” The Kookaburras squad will represent their states at the Australian Hockey League titles in Darwin in September, before the Oceania Cup in September and the next World League finals competition in India in November and December.
