Ultraman Triathlon world champion Richard Thompson launches Thompson Legal

Former two-time Ultraman Triathlon world champion Richard Thompson is hanging up his running shoes to start a new law firm on the Sunshine Coast.

Ultraman Australia 2017 Champion Richard Thompson crosses the finish line at Noosa Main Beach in a World Best Ultraman time.

Former two-time Ultraman Triathlon world champion Richard Thompson is hanging up his running shoes to step back to his original career as a lawyer.

Thompson has hammered up his own shingle Thompson Legal, which will specialise in property, commercial law and wills and estates.

Thompson has secured a spacious 220 square metre office within the Bli Bli Village precinct and hired five staff members. “If I was going to do it, my vision was to go big and go all in,” says Thompson. “It’s part of my DNA and I’ve been able to prove through my career as a professional athlete as well as in my career as a lawyer that being both strategic and bold with my intentions is the key to achieving high performing success.”

Thompson’s legal team includes succession lawyer Mahoney Neuwirth, property law young gun Tayla Rawlings, head of support Teresa Mundt and Cody Osborne as practice manager. Thompson says he also has managed to coax legal industry stalwart John Kruger out of retirement to join as a specialist consultant.

Athlete turned lawyer Richard Thompson

After graduating with law and accounting degrees from QUT, Thompson spent a number of years working as a solicitor including a successful stint with legal identity Peter Boyce at Butler McDermott in Nambour. Over the past five years, he focused on his career as a professional ultraman triathlete, which took him across the globe winning two world titles and breaking a world record for the gruelling three day Ultraman event in Hawaii.

The Thompson name is synonymous within the local legal and business community with Richard’s grandfather Fraser Thompson establishing one of the region’s first law firms at Mooloolaba in the 1970s.

One hump or two?

Kudos to the Scenic Rim’s Summer Land Camels, which has just come away as the champions of the 2024 Sydney Royal Cheese and Dairy Show.

The camel dairy was awarded a swag of medals including gold for best milk, silver for Persian feta, and bronze for milk powder.

With a legacy dating back to the 1870s, the show is one of the industry’s most prestigious competitions. Summer Land Camels director Paul Martin says the dairy has been at the forefront of innovation when it comes to developing new products, with an emphasis on preserving the health benefits of the milk.

“Camel milk is globally renowned for its health benefits and as a nutritional dairy alternative,” says Martin. “In Australia, we boast the healthiest camels with superior genetics.

“Rather than culling these incredible creatures, establishing a sustainable industry makes much more sense, and we’re actively contributing to that initiative.”

Ellena Bird with Hercules the orphan camel at Summer Land Camels.

Family matters

Brisbane-based investment manager Alvia Asset Partners has celebrated the fifth anniversary of its core family office portfolio with a double digit outperformance. Alvia chief executive Nathan Robertson says the portfolio delivered a total return of 84 per cent against the composite benchmark of 53.1 per cent since inception - an outperformance of 30.9 per cent.  He says the company has been able to swiftly adapt to prevailing market conditions, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the 2021/22 tech wreck.