Source: New Zealand Parliament – Hansard
Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National): Thank you, Mr Speaker. I think the Minister stole my speech! But the National Party is delighted to support the motion of congratulations to the New Zealand Winter Olympic team, and agrees with the Minister’s comments in support of them.
I think at a time when there are so many concerning issues and events to consider, our 2022 Winter Olympians have provided us with a tremendous distraction as we stopped and watched their amazing performance. And I think we should all be grateful for that distraction. But what a day Sunday, 6 February was: I think the whole country was holding its breath as Zoi Sadowski-Synnott tore down the slope-style course, knowing that the difference between nailing it and failing it were very, very fine margins. And that final run to win gold will go down, I think, not only as one of New Zealand’s great Olympic moments but as one of our great sporting moments. And to follow that up with a medal in the Big Air to become the first New Zealander to win multiple medals at a Winter Olympic Games, and to now hold medals of all colours, is a wonderful achievement. And then came Nico Porteous, already a world champion, who won Olympic gold in the men’s freeski halfpipe—a terrific performance under enormous pressure. We acknowledge the other 13 athletes, who, while not medalling, all performed with great distinction under enormous pressure.
I want to acknowledge the huge amount of support provided by the families and friends of our athletes; also my old school mate, chef de mission Marty Toomey, and the rest of the team supporting the athletes; and also Victor Klap and the late Sir Eion Edgar, who were the driving force behind Wānaka’s Winter Games for the last 10 years or so, that I think provided the springboard for the level of performance that our winter athletes are now performing at.
A special mention also, I think, of the Wānaka community, where Zoi, Nico, and many of the other athletes have actually been based. Just about every single person at the Wānaka fan zone knew, or at least claimed to know, one or two of the athletes. I mean, I think that local support is a reflection of the Kiwi spirit, especially in that most beautiful part of our country. One of those Wānaka friends told 1News, on that Sunday that Zoi won her gold, something that I thought summed up the spirit of the team. She simply said, “I’m just happy she had fun.” And for me, I think, that sums up the spirit of this team, at a time when we can only imagine the effort, the sacrifice, and the enormous pressure performing at the highest level creates. But whatever those pressures were, they didn’t show. What showed was joy—joy at soaring above the snow, joy at competing, joy at doing their best, and joy in victory. They also brought great joy to all of us, and for that, we are tremendously grateful and proud of them.
Finally, I join the Minister in sending our three Paralympic team members, Adam Hall, Aaron Ewen, and Corey Peters our very best wishes as they compete in the Paralympic Winter Games, starting this weekend. I know they’ll also do us proud.
