Kyoda.
I'm Chelsea Daniels and this is the Front Page, a daily podcast presented by The New Zealand Herald.
The twenty twenty.
Four Paris Olympics have come to an end, and what a fortnight it's been for the New Zealand team. With ten gold's, seven silver and three bronze, our athletes are bringing home the most gold medals ever won in a single Olympics and have.
Equalled our record set in Tokyo.
With the likes of Dame Lisa Carrington and Lydia Coe ensuring.
Their place in the history books.
To rising stars like Hamish Kerr, Elise Andrews and Finn Butcher, there were plenty of Kiwi sporting stars in action. With the Games now over and the four year journey to Los Angeles twenty twenty eight already beginning for some.
We're recapping the Olympic highs and lows today on the front.
Page with Newstalk zb's sports reporter and gold sport commentator Elliott Smith.
Elliott, let's start with the highlights.
If you had to pick just one kei we medal to celebrate, which one would it be?
Well? Goodness, Chelsea coming in hot early on look, I think for me it'd be the high jump of Hamish Kerr. I think he overcame some issues in the qualifying and then in the final just brought her out and was so so good in that and the drama that came in that with the jump off and everything like that. You know, New Zealand's medals in the track and field have been few and far between. You think of Valerie
Adams in recent times, Tom Walsh. But to win a gold medal in something like the high jump I thought was exceptional. And just the celebration, racing around Star de France, around the turf and celebrating in that manner, that one stands out to me. But trying to narrow it down very very difficult. But I thought that was a pretty special one from a New Zealand perspective.
And it's interesting, hey, because they both decided to the jump off in the end, And I've seen some American reports giving the American competitor some slack for being selfish, whereas in Tokyo didn't they share the medal and then got the same amount of slack.
That's right, I don't think you're gonna win. I think that's always going to be a difficult conversation because some people will go and like in Tokyo, oh, you know, it's not really in the what is in the Olympic spirit, but it isn't to have a shared gold medal. This time around they didn't share it and there was a distinct gold, distinct silver. I think for me, I thought
that was probably the way to go about it. You've come this far, you're going to get the least silver anyway, why not try and split it and go for the gold. I thought it added extra drama, extra tension. Look, I'm sure order being special for Hamish Cure if he shared the gold medal, But in some ways sharing the gold's almost like sharing a silver. It's not quite as distinct as the two. Whereas with Hamish curR now he knows
he is the best high jumper in the world. He's won the Olympic gold medal, He's not sharing it with anyone and he gets there on his own.
So Dame Lisa Carrington the goat in the boat with eight golds. Now she's now ranked sixteenth of all time, ahead of Usain Bolt.
The only New Zealander in the top one hundred.
Ready to race in the women's kayak for if they can't see the finish line.
It is gold for.
New Zealand and the sixth Golden moment for Dame Lisa. New Zealand's supposed to decorate an Olympian, Lisa Carrington strikes gold again.
Are we ever going to see another one like her?
I don't know that we will, and we should treasure it for as long as her career lasts. Whether she decides to go again for LA in four years time or decides that that's enough, you wouldn't blame her either way. If she decides that her eight gold medals is enough,
then ghepsolutely good on her. But the success that she's had in not only the individual by but what she's brought to the K two and the K four has been immense for New Zealand and I think obviously she's our greatest Olympian, but just looking at the way that she brings others up to her skill level in the K two and the K four, they wouldn't win without her. She's like the motor right at the front of the boat. She's so metronomic in the way that she gets in
the kayak. Obviously she's got incredible strength, but there's something that she just seems to have a symbiotic relationship with the boat and the water and the paddle that when she gets on the water, she is completely unstoppable. She knows the beats that she has to hit, she knows where she needs to be to win a race, and she pulls along the other person in the boat in the cave, so the other three in the K four
without wanting to diminish their success as well. But she's so integral to that, so we need to absolutely treasure it while at last. And to think that she's been at the top of her game in a number of boats right from London twenty twelve through to this Olympics in twenty twenty four, now at thirty five years of age through twelve years of success and no one has really got close to her, especially in the individual events, is remarkable. Look, I wouldn't roll her out going to
Los Angeles in four years time. She doesn't look like she is being close to being court yet, especially in the individual boats. So hey, we might see her extend on that success as in New Zealander and maybe try and catch some of those others that are at the top of the all timetable for the world.
Well, after she did her races, it looked like she could go and do them again.
Yeah, that's it. She definitely seems to FaZe that she's done the race, and everyone else looks like they're about to vomit on the block once they get out, and she's like fresh as a daisy. It's remarkable that she can do that. And you know, thirty five, she's still young. A lot of the competitors around and the clerking seem to go to their to late thirty. So it's probably a fifty to fifty call as to whether she competes again.
And LA certainly didn't close the door on that necessarily, so I imagine she'll take some time now to figure out whether she does want to go out to LA and whether that competitive energy still burns bright. And already what she's done as Schlsea has been remarkable. If she was able to build on that in LA, it would be quite incredible.
And I can see her hanging around the Olympics as well and really building up the younger generations like she already kind of has that.
Yeah, that's right, I mean the competitors or the teammates rather she had in the K two and the K four are still very very young and her experience is invaluable. It was the flag bearer at the closing ceremony along with Finn Butcher, so that is remarkable. I imagine she's got a great future in the sport, whether it's as a coach or a mentor whatever it might be. As I mentioned before, that relationship that she seems to have with the boats is intrinsic. It seems to be in
her soul. But if she can pass down some of those tips, so the next generation there might be another someone who can come close to Lisa Carrington or maybe replicate some of those eforts on the water and the Olympics.
To come so Lydia Coe's gold gives her a complete set of medals, a first for a golfer of any gender at the Olympics, and qualifies.
Her for the LGPA Hall of Fame.
Is there anything else for her to do or she basically just clocked her sport at twenty seven.
She's long talked about wanting to retire at the age of thirty, even back when she was a teenager she sort of said she's not in golf for life. This isn't going to be everything. She's obviously very very good at it, but has other things that she wants to do once she has thirty. And I spoke to her before the Olympics and she was still quite set on that,
saying it would be her last Olympic Games. I mean, you can look at her career and go she was absolute prodigy, very very young, switched to being a pro one major's, you know, when she was still very young. Hasn't had a major win in a while in terms of those events every year, but completed the Olympics the best Olympic golfer as it stands in history with the three different medals. Maybe she would like more majors, but
she seems to rise when the Olympics come on. It just seems to be an event that she can play a best golf at. And whether it's just different sort of the majors where she has had some success, but maybe not as much as she would like. She seems to target the Olympics. And while we don't see her down in New Zealand very long, she's very proud in New Zealand. It always talks about how proud she is
to represent New Zealand on the LPGA tour. But also when you're doing it at the Olympics, wearing the silver fern, you're hearing the national anthem at the end, there's something clearly very special about that. And look, I know she said it's her last Olympics. Maybe she might get her arm twisted. You know, she plays a lot of her golf in America and has a residency there as well.
Whether there is a prospect she might play in LA twenty twenty eight at the stage, no, but similar Lisa Carrington wouldn't rule it out.
Co kept her calm and finished in style with a birdie the woman in all black on the final green, enjoying the adulation.
And obviously we can't shout out absolutely everyone, but who else caught your eye?
Oh look Alexandres was phenomenal and what a way to finish the Olympic Games with a couple of gold medals. I know her on the track and the kreen and then in the sprint. She is absolutely remarkable what she can do and still so very young. She's got a couple more Olympic cycles left in her and I really love the way that nothing seems to FaZe Alexandrews. She's got an eye for the finish line or eye for
the valodrome. She just absolutely puts her head down and just peddles her heart out and at times it doesn't look like as any other competitors out in the valodrome. That's the kind of the way that she races. She's just doing it knowing that if she hits her marks, similar to Lisa Carrington, if she does what she needs to do, she's confident that she will get the gold medal. Success so'd win in the sprint, in the Kerran, two
big events in the track. Cycling was absolutely special. So for me that's the other heart of the Games, at least Andrews winning those gold medals.
Now, if we look into nationally, who were the standout athletes from other countries?
In your view, oh, I think you look at someone Biles and the way that she came back from the twisties as she calls them, in twenty twenty one, the mental health issues she had there and there was so much pressure on her in twenty twenty one, and obviously all eyes were on her again when she came back this time around. But to do that, and I know she's remarked around, you know the fact that gymnastics is a young person sport and she's only in her late twenties.
But for a gymnast that's pretty late in their career or very very late in their career. But to come back and do it and prove that she is the greatest gymnast of all time at the Paris Olympics, and look, I know that the La will be standing there. She's already had to say towards the end of her career, but that home Olympics might be something that draws her back. But it was great to see her back out and winning gold medals at the back end of her career.
The swimming I thought was excellent, especially in the female class. We had eric A fee Weather they're from a New Zealand perspective, who went close in the women's four hundred meters, but Arion Tipmas, some of Macintosh and Katie Ladecki dominated the pool from an international perspective in the women's event, I thought that was outstanding. In the track and field again had some surprises. You know, Noah La was winning the men's one hundred meters then getting COVID and still
managing at bronze was outrageous. We had the Dutch winning the for by four hundred meter women's relay, So I always love those track and field events to put some surprises up and I think we saw the cream rise to the top once again around that. And if I was to signal out a favorite similar Tolexa Carrington, Katie
Ladecki from America. She started in twenty twelve, light Lisa Carrington continuing at twenty twenty four, and she's got a home Olympics potentially in twenty three eight that I'm sure she's probably targeting as well. But watching her in the pool is watching Lisa Carrington in the boat. No one can touch you.
And the Refugee Olympic team won their first medal as well.
Yeah, absolutely, what a special moment for them.
Box, Cindy and Gamba made history by winning a first ever medal for the Refugee Olympic team. Gamba was born in Cameroon and moved to the UK at the age of eleven, but has been unable to obtain citizenship. The Olympic Refugee team has made up of thirty seven athletes from eleven different countries, all.
The harrowing things that the refugee group have been through. To go through that and not only compete at the Olympics, but to do it on their own terms, wearing the not the colors of the nation, but the adopted colors of the refugee status, and to win a medal is incredible because they are deserving of being there. They win medals and I thought that was absolutely fantastic to see them there once again.
This Olympics saw the return of surfing, skateboarding, and sport climbing and an attempt to bring in breaking or break dancing on those first three, which are now core Olympic sports.
Do you think do you think worries on all.
Three of them still? To be honest, I think surfing this time felt a little bit isolated. It was held in Tahiti. Obviously, you know there's a French connection there, but it just felt like the tyranny of distance was so great between that it just didn't feel connected to the Olympics. I think that was an issue. I'm still not sure. It's rarely hit its straps in the Olympics yet. Skateboarding I think is worthy of being there. I think it's a real sport that can connect with young people.
The Olympics is trying to shed this image of being a little too fuddy duddy, and I think events like skateboarding, you know, they really belong. It connects with the youth and the talent that's on display there is very, very impressive. And I really like the sport climbing. I think that's a great event. It's rapid, it's fast. Seeing the New Zealander is involved there, but just seeing how quickly they can go up the war on the straight speed climbing
is five seconds to race up a wall. Those the kind of events the Olympics should be looking at to try and innovate. There are popular events on their own, bring them into the Olympic fold fields.
Right and do you reckon? Breaking? Is one and done?
Do you think I suspect so? Yeah, I'm not sure that entirely worked. Poor old ray Gun out of Australia.
She gave it a go. Could you imagine this is the Olympics.
This isn't about giving you the guy, this is about the pinnacle. Yeah, just felt a little bit out of it, felt like a character from a Crystal Lily skitch in all honesty.
It felt so out of place, it was so it was awful to.
Yeah, and look, the memes have been constant in the last couple of days since she competed, and I feel sorry for her to an extent, but it was a little bit silly. The whole thing, the breakdancing. I don't think it's going to be back and I don't think it works, so we can just consign that to the Olympic rubbishman.
I think in her Ossie, Green and Gold trackies, we saw a kangaroo hop, the sprinkler pedstad and all of it earned her exactly zero points from the judges. I think justice for Reygun anyway. I think she's she went out there and she gave it a go. She was the best Australia guy not known for our breakdancing talent.
No, it's not going to be in Brisbane in twenty thirty two, so poor old Reygun. I don't think we'll be compete get a home Olympics.
Kayak Cross made its jaboo as well and clinched us a gold medal for Finn Butcher.
Are you excited to see that continue?
I am.
I thought that was one of the highlights of the Games in all honesty. In terms of the new sports, it's almost like the TV shirt gladiators. You know, you've got some tension between the competitors. They're allowed to hit each other within reason. They're allowed to bash each other with the boats. They're all scrambling down this course, and not only that, they're going on a whitewater rapid course, so you're trying to beat your competitors to the line.
It felt like it really worked and there was a It was great to see a Kiwi win that, But I thought it was an event that the Olympics kind of needs. Sometimes you're very much competing in sort of time trials or races and lanes. This is you know, going elbowing each other. You can do pretty much whatever you like within reasons. So I thought that was a real success for the KaiA Cross. So I'm excited to see that back in four years time.
Obviously, not every kiwi who went to Paris is coming home with a medal. Do you think there are any kiwis who will really be feeling it the worst right now? Oh?
Look, I think there's certainly some that were expected to win medals and didn't come away with it. You know, I think the shot potters and Tom Walsh and Jacko Girl may have thought they were a chance of a medal for sure. Didn't happen. The men sevens team failed to deliver in the opening week, and I think with
our swimmers as well. I mentioned eric A fair Weather before she was beaten by three of probably the greatest female swimmers of all time in Ladecki, Macintosh and Tipmas, she would have maybe thought that she's a chance of a medal. Didn't quite happen. Lewis Clairbert I thought had a disappointing game, so there was a lot of eyes on him and what he could potentially do in the individual medleys just didn't click for her and he battled
to get going at these Olympics. So it's different for everyone, isn't it. For the Olympics, there's a lot that don't necessarily go there to make up the numbers, but they know that a medal is probably beyond their reach, but maybe a making a final or a PB is a success for them. And others go chasing that gold medal, chasing silver, chasing bronze, and when it doesn't happen, that's obviously a failure in their eyes. So I think those
are some of the failures that'll be there. And look, New Zealand's long absence without a medal in the pool continues nineteen ninety six and Atlanta, that gap is going to extend out to at least thirty two years.
Cycling, rowing, kayaking, canoeing, sailing. We do seem to do quite well at those concentrated group of sports, don't we. How come those are the ones where all the funding goes. Is it because we're bringing home medals or are we bringing home medals because that's where all the funding goes?
I think yeah.
I think it's a bit of a circle of funding brings results and brings medals, therefore it gets more funding the next time around when they go cap in hands to get the allocation of their funding. You've got to basically win medals to get money and then once you do, you sort of on the right track there. I mean, those are the sports that New Zealand has been traditionally very successful at and the Olympic context, Cycling has been very very good in delivering medals for New Zealand, so
to rowing and kayaking. Therefore they get more money to continue on that trajectory in sports that maybe New Zealand has had success in previously, like hockey. When the success runs out, the tap of funding runs out as well. I don't think throwing money at things necessarily means that you're going to get results, but I think it certainly helps. Australia has got very, very good swimmers, but I think
the profile of swimming in Australia is high. Here you have athletes who want to go in and start swimming, whereas here in New Zealand. I don't think that necessarily is the case. I think there's definitely a question around the funding model in New Zealand. We target those sports that do deliver a little bit metals. You can make an argument saying maybe we should put some more money into the swimmings of the world. Would it return success?
I don't know. Basketball often is brought up. You know, it's a worldwide sport that we're okay it and in a context we didn't make the Olympics this time around, but if you put some more funding in there's a possibility they could have success there. So there's always the prienial question around the funding. Do you fund the sports that were New Zealand is good at or do you fund the ones that have more of a worldwide profile. I think that debate is going to continue for as
long as I'm alive. I don't think they'll ever be a particular answer to that, Chelsea. But I think you direct the funding where you're likely to have success, and on the basis of that and the basis of the return at these Olympic Games, it's hard to argue that they've got it wrong.
Well, if you look at other sports like athletics or the triathlon, for instance, our success there seems to be driven by the talent of an individual rather than the cohort of people.
Hey, do we need to be.
Looking at funding more sports to build up bigger teams create more of a talent pool.
Quite possibly. I mean, I think it's different with some of those individual sports more so than a team. Sometimes you get that just absolute freak of nature that is capable of doing things in the pool or on the track or in the field that are deserving of money. But just because you throw money at you may not
necessarily find those things. I think there is some success New Zealand could have with swimming, which has had a fair bit of money thrown at it, and we've got Erica Fairweather and Lewis Clebert or the two shining stars at the moment. But I'm not sure compared to the Australias of the world and the Americas that tip so much money into those programs that New Zealand will ever
be able to compete financially. So I think you have to rely on that freak of nature coming through that is just worthy of the money, rather than building the teams up that way.
And if we only do fund the sports that we know that we're good at, doesn't that prevent us from adapting for the future and finding those new sports like that climbing event.
Absolutely, And it's an interesting one. How do you get people interested. We're probably watching the Olympics as a start, and I'm sure there's krewek kids that are out there wanting to try sport climbing as a result of the two New Zealanders competing in the sport climbing. And I'm sure it's the case for a number of sports out there that you might see more doing the high jump
because of Hamish curve. Kids might want to track up track cycling, which has druditionally got a different barrier into it than going down and doing a bit of high jump at the local athletics field. So you got to find a way to open those doors for these athletes and create the opportunities for them. It's very easy. From a New Zealand school suspective and sports perspective, you know, a lot of schools run rugby programs, they run athletics programs,
they run to an extent swimming programs as well. That's more solid and clubs, so the programs are there. From a high school perspective, primary school to high school, getting kids into sport climbing is always going to be more and more difficult, So I think you've got to find ways to innovate and get players in. And that's the
basketball thing as well. It's on the world stage. New Zealand's probably never going to win a gold medal and basketball, but competing on a world stage seeing the New Zealand's black singlet representing there, it would be very very key
in getting more kiwis into the sport as well. So I think it's argument and a question that never quite has a complete answer, and I think you know, there's only a certain pot of money as well, Chelsea, isn't there that they can allocate to these sports and you've got to target the one that perennially New Zealand has success.
And thanks for joining us, Elliot.
That said, for this episode of the Front Page. You can read more about today's stories and extensive news coverage at ZAD Herald dot co dot nz. The Front Page is produced by Ethan Seals with sound engineer Patty Fox.
I'm Chelsea Daniels.
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