[2] Realizing that he needed funding and a full-time career, Kusurin applied for a full scholarship and took up a business degree in finance at the University of Washington in Seattle.
He participated twice in The Boat Race, in 2007 and 2009, along with top-class rowers including Great Britain's Colin Smith and New Zealand's George Bridgewater, an Olympic bronze medalist in the coxless pair.
[3] Kusurin represented Croatia the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where he and his partner Mario Vekić competed for the men's double sculls.
[4] Shortly before the rowing competition, Kusurin and Vekic were involved in a bus accident, which killed three Chinese nationals and injured several Australian delegates and their coach Dragutin Milinkovic.
[5] While their coach was rushed to a nearby hospital around Beijing, the pair went off to the competition and rowed strongly for a fourth-place finish in the semi-final round, with a fastest possible time of 6:24.89.