Hubbard is the child of Dick Hubbard, a former Mayor of Auckland City and the founder of Hubbard Foods. Competing before her gender transition under the name Gavin Hubbard, Hubbard set New Zealand junior records in 1998 in the newly established M105+ division with snatch 135 kg, clean & jerk 170 kg, total 300 kg. Those records were later surpassed by David Liti. In 2012 Hubbard was appointed to the position of Executive Officer for Olympic Weightlifting New Zealand. Subsequently she transitioned to female and became Laurel Hubbard. At the 2017 Australian International & Australian Open in Melbourne, she competed at the heaviest 90 kg+ category, winning the gold medal with a 123 kg snatch and 145 kg clean & jerk, for a total of 268 kg at a bodyweight of 131.83 kg. She thus became the first trans woman to win an international weightlifting title for New Zealand. Although Hubbard met eligibility requirements to compete, her win sparked controversy, with some other competitors claiming the competition was unfair. Athletes that were critical of the decision to allow Hubbard to compete include Iuniarra Sipaia, Toafitu Perive, Deborah Acason and Tracey Lambrechs. Australian Weightlifting Federation's chief executive, Michael Keelan, said it was unfair to other competitors. Hubbard qualified for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, but an elbow injury during the competition forced her withdrawal from the event while leading the field. Hubbard won two gold medals at the 2019 Pacific Games in Samoa. The decision to allow Hubbard to compete was subsequently criticised by the Samoa 2019 chairman, Loau Solamalemalo Keneti Sio, and Samoa's Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi. In 2020 she won the gold medal in the women's +87kg event at the Roma 2020 World Cup in Rome, Italy.
Major results
Personal life
In January 2019, Hubbard pleaded guilty to careless driving causing injury after an incident in October 2018 which left another driver with severe spinal injuries. She paid reparations and was disqualified from driving for one month. The presiding judge also ordered that Hubbard's name be suppressed to avoid distressing publicity as she trained for the Olympics. However, the order was lifted in July 2019 after Stuff appealed to the High Court.
