From the brilliant blue sky and uninterrupted ocean views to the driftwood wedding arch lovingly built by family, it was a picture-perfect day for retired swimmer Laura Quilter when she married her longtime love, New Zealand Paddle Blacks captain Alex Lowen.
While Laura had never been a girl who dreamed about what her wedding dress might look like, there was always one non-negotiable about her big day.
“All I knew was that if I ever got married, it had to be at Gisborne’s Wainui Beach, which is a place so special to me,” says Laura, who grew up attending nippers and surf lifesaving there.
“I wanted to showcase the Gizzy I know to our guests, rather than the one they often see in the news – having a tough time for all these crazy storms or the ongoing closure of the gorge due to slips.”
“And the day couldn’t have been better,” smiles Alex, who will soon wear the silver fern for his tenth – and last – World Canoe Polo Championships in September. “A wedding at the end of April is always a bit of a gamble, but there was not a breath of wind and the sea was calm.”
Setting the scene for forever
The adventure-loving pair had pictured a day full of love and laughter since they became engaged last year while hiking the Heaphy Track.
With around 130 guests wearing “beach formal”, the relaxed afternoon ceremony was held on the sand, right outside the Wainui Surf Lifesaving tower.
As a radiant Laura made her way down the shore on the arm of her father Murray, the lyrics to Sir Elton John’s Your Song rang out. But as the nerves kicked in, all she could hear was the rapid beating
of her heart.
“I did not expect to feel the same way as I do before a swimming event – like I have tachycardia,” laughs Laura, 33. “But the nerves settled as soon as I saw Alex and then I got excited. He looked amazing and everyone else melted away.
I know that sounds gooey!
“In the lead-up to the day, I also tried my best not to be a bridezilla. The only thing I said I wanted was an archway on the sand to make it feel more wedding-like. My dad did an amazing job with his Gisborne artist mate Owen Williams to build me an incredible one.”
Laura’s exquisite ivory gown was custom-made by Dong Silk, a top tailor in Hoi An, Vietnam, when she was in Southeast Asia for last year’s World Aquatic Championships. She was the second-oldest swimmer there and her surprise comeback followed an 11-year hiatus from competitive swimming after not making the Rio Olympics in 2016.
She explains, “I wanted a dress with a deep open back because why not show off what swimming has given me in terms of a muscular physique. And I found a lace veil in Auckland.”
And it didn’t fail to impress her proud groom.
An emotional ‘I do’
Alex, 34 recalls, “When Laura came around the corner, the biggest wave of emotion I’ve ever felt swept over me. She was breathtaking. I felt like I couldn’t breathe and had this frog in my throat. She looked stunning – better than in my wildest dreams.
“My other emotional moment was having my close mate Richie Carpenter act as our unofficial celebrant. His dad Glyn was like a second father to me and as he was the celebrant at his sons’ weddings, he would have been the celebrant at mine too. But sadly, he passed away from cancer a few years ago. So I asked Richie if he wouldn’t mind stepping in. Laura and I were so grateful.”
Gazing into each other’s eyes, the couple shared their heartfelt vows, which also included a bit of cheeky humour.
“I promised not to put mince in the slow cooker,” laughs Laura. “I did that once and it was the worst meal ever!”
Alex says he vowed to always protect his wife from cockroaches and let her win the occasional card game.
“Laura is super-competitive,” he says. “Back in her flatting days, they used to play a fast-paced card game called Set, and she’d get quite aggressive because she’s like a world champion at it.”
After being declared husband and wife, a fun-filled reception followed, held at the Wainui Surf Lifesaving Club. The bartender was Laura’s old nippers coach!
Laura’s father kicked off the speeches, before Alex’s best man and brother Bryce gave the newlyweds some relationship advice.
“It is never Alex versus Laura. It is Team Alex and Laura versus the problem.”
A dance to remember
While guests tucked into a three-tiered carrot wedding cake made by Bryce, the couple had their first dance to Hozier’s Would That I.
“I love dancing but I’m not very good at it,” admits Laura. “So before the wedding, I sent a video of Alex and I doing a line dance to country hit Cotton Eye Joe. I told everyone to learn it or they wouldn’t
get dessert!
“So after our first dance, the DJ played Cotton Eye Joe and it was like a stampede of athletes trying to get on the dance floor. I’ve never seen anything like it. It went off!
“At the end of the night, the DJ told us he’d never seen so much energy on the dance floor.”
The loved-up pair describe the day as unforgettable. “It was everything we could have dreamed of.”
Juggling love, life and sport
However, a honeymoon will have to wait until 2027, because Laura has taken up an opportunity to coach in Thailand and the Maldives, while Alex is off to compete at the World Canoe Polo championships in Germany.
Their 10-year love story has always revolved around the water. Now based on Auckland’s North Shore, Laura thought she had long stopped making waves in the international arena after the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Then after unexpectedly swimming better than ever at a New Zealand Masters Games, the registered nurse decided to make a comeback.
Laura began training again around her shifts as an urgent-care nurse and documented her journey – competing in the women’s 50m freestyle and 50m butterfly – with 79,000 followers on her Instagram account @auramove.nz.
But recently, she announced her retirement from the pool.
“The nationals were a few weeks after the wedding and I just didn’t want to think about competing or being in very structured training around that time,” she explains. “It felt right.
“To be on the national team the first time in 11 years was just such a high for me, though. Now it’s given me more time to focus on helping others in a coaching capacity.
“This is not the end of swimming for me. I will remain involved through Masters swimming, triathlon and other events moving forward. Swimming is something I truly love.”
Alex bids a bittersweet farewell
For Alex, who owns Lowen Physiotherapy & Performance, and is one of the senior stalwarts of the Paddle Blacks team, this is his last world championships before retiring.
He reflects, “It’s going to be emotional. I feel like I’ve given the sport a lot of my time, effort and money, but I think it’s time to leave on a high rather than cling on.”
Alex’s first time playing for New Zealand was in 2012, when he represented the under-21s at the World Championship in Poland.
The beginning of a new chapter
“While we’re relatively independent, the biggest thing for me about getting married was promising Alex that I’ll always be supportive,” says Laura, who has taken her husband’s surname. “Life’s not an easy journey, so it’s a commitment to making sure he knows I’m always in his corner for the rest of our days – for the good and the bad.
“People often say marriage doesn’t change your relationship much, but to me, it actually does feel a bit different. It feels like our relationship is so much deeper. I’m excited to be his wife and start this new chapter.”
Alex adds that they bring out the best in each other, while pushing each other to be better.
He enthuses, “Laura seeks out fun and makes things enjoyable through everything she does. Whether it’s, ‘Hey, let’s throw on jackets and walk in the rain on the beach’ or do a road trip, she draws everybody else into that.
“But it’s not just about grand gestures and big trips or adventures either. It’s about the small moments at home, simply enjoying each other’s company.”
