Axeman Kahu Woolley Makes Miraculous Comeback After Cardiac Arrest

Australian-based Woolley makes an emotional return to home soil this week - at the Stihl Timbersport NZ Nationals -  for the first time since suffering a near-fatal heart attack mid-competition in Victoria last November.

The 44-year-old mechanic was brought back to life multiple times after collapsing mid-competition at a wood chopping event in Victoria, South Australia late last year. His heart stopped repeatedly for 15 minutes as fellow competitors performed CPR and shocked him with a defibrillator.

Now, in a twist even Woolley finds hard to believe, he’s lining up against New Zealand’s best at the Timbersport Nationals at the Rural Games in Palmerston North this weekend.

“I’ve been given a second chance at life, so I’m keen to see how far I can go,” says Woolley of the sport.

Woolley was halfway through the race near Geelong, cutting a log with an axe, when he suddenly felt very weak and his vision blurred. 

"Normally, I can finish those logs off in 20–30 seconds, but this time I was really struggling with it. When I finally finished I walked back over to my axe box, put the axe in the box, sat down on the chair next to my wife and said 'there's something wrong'.

"Then my chest really tightened up. I couldn't breathe and I basically died in her arms."

The defibrillator restored his heartbeat several times before emergency services airlifted him to Geelong Hospital, where surgeons inserted a stent to open a collapsed artery.

“If they hadn’t had a defibrillator there, I wouldn’t be here.”

After five years away from the sport, Woolley had only recently returned to competitive chopping in Australia where he’d been based for the previous decade. He spent most of last year training five times a week in the lead-up to the event where he suffered the cardiac arrest.

“I was in pretty good nick. I’d even won a state title the week before.”

Woolley has made a strong recovery and has been cleared to return to competition. Doctors confirmed there was no long-term heart damage, though the incident prompted Woolley — who was adopted as a baby — to investigate his biological family history, uncovering a genetic predisposition to heart disease.

Originally from Taumarunui – the father of five NZ born children - has competed in wood chopping since age 14.

He previously represented NZ in wood chopping in both the Under 21 and Men’s Open team – including competing alongside the late, great Jason Wynyard at Timbersport World Championships in Europe.

Woolley remembers Wynyard saying many axemen actually peak in their mid-forties.

“Jason was a huge inspiration for me, so I’m definitely keen to see how far I can go with my comeback at this age.

“Plus I still managed to finish chopping that bloody block I had the heart attack on — so who knows what I can do now with a good ticker,” Woolley laughed.

Woolley also says he’s determined not just to compete — but to raise awareness about heart health, CPR training, and the importance of having defibrillators at sporting events.