News of New Zealanders via Global Media

Rubberman Prevails

Rubberman Prevails

Palmerston North 21-year-old freestyle motorcross champion Levi Sherwood has become the youngest-ever winner of the Red Bull X-Fighters tour championship beating French rider Thomas Pagès on Cockatoo Island in Sydney. “All I came here…

Women Enter Sevens Fold

Women Enter Sevens Fold

The success of New Zealand’s rugby teams will create high expectations on the country’s women as they embark on the first International Rugby Board (IRB) women’s sevens world series in November, coach Sean Horan…

Southern Hemisphere Champs

Southern Hemisphere Champs

The world champion All Blacks routed Argentina 54-15 to secure the southern hemisphere’s inaugural Rugby Championship with a game to spare. New Zealand outscored the Pumas by seven tries in La Plata, all coming…

Bevin’s Got Great Legs

Bevin’s Got Great Legs

New Zealand cyclists Patrick Bevin and Logan Hutchins have taken first and second places respectively in the inaugural Thompson Bucks County Classic professional bicycle race in Pennsylvania. Finishing 1-2 with Hutchins was a special…

Art of Rugby

Art of Rugby

Examining the All Blacks 21-11 win against his national team, the Springboks, Brumbies coach Jake White writes in The Citizen’s sports column: “The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands,…

Talent Gets On With It

Talent Gets On With It

“The golf prodigy Lydia Ko was asked how she would cope with being the youngest competitor this week at the Women’s British Open, which was like asking Sean Lennon how he deals with being…

Charming Sport Over Ice

Charming Sport Over Ice

“Here at Naseby, a seriously small town in Central Otago region, I meet Sean Becker, a former Olympic curling representative and current member of the New Zealand men’s team, his father, Peter Becker, and…

Win After Dark

Win After Dark

A blackout at Wellington’s Stadium “was an apt metaphor” for the All Blacks versus Argentina game, “with few highlights to speak about as both sides battled driving rain and swirling gale-force winds”, the Buenos…

Giant Impresses

Giant Impresses

New Zealander Steven Adams, 19, “just may be one of the most intriguing players in college basketball this season, not to mention one of the most physically impressive at 7-foot, 250 pounds,” ESPN senior…

Three Medals for Sophie

Three Medals for Sophie

19-year-old Christchurch swimming star Sophie Pascoe broke a world record and took three medals in the pool at the London Paralympics, two golds and a silver. Pascoe’s first gold saw her set a new…

Teen Golfer Makes History

Teen Golfer Makes History

Fifteen-year-old amateur sensation Aucklander Lydia Ko has made golfing history becoming the youngest LPGA champion closing with a 5-under 67 for a three-stroke victory over at Inbee Park to win the Canadian Women’s Open….

Bledisloe Trouncing

Bledisloe Trouncing

For the first time in 50 years the world champion All Blacks kept the Australians scoreless, beating the Wallabies 22-0 at Eden Park and retaining the Bledisloe Cup for the 10th consecutive season. The…

Solving the Problem of Concussion

Solving the Problem of Concussion

Thirty-five-year-old former New Zealand, Blues and Auckland scrum-half Steve Devine, who was forced to retire from rugby in 2007, knows all too well how debilitating the long-term effects of concussions can be. In the…

Multi-tasking on Court

Multi-tasking on Court

New Zealand point guard Tai Webster has committed to studying and playing at the University of Nebraska. Webster, at 17 years old, is a rising star, having become the youngest player to ever make…

First Win of the Series

First Win of the Series

The All Blacks have won their first post-World Cup tournament against the Wallabies in the Rugby Championship opener beating the Australians 27-19 in Sydney. Australia must win at its Eden Park graveyard on 25…

Elegant and with Punch

Elegant and with Punch

“A track-only racing car built without the restraints of racing regulations, the 12C Can-Am is based on the 12C GT3 racer – but it goes well beyond what the FIA…

Valerie Achieves Olympic Goal

Valerie Achieves Olympic Goal

Valerie Adams has had her silver Olympic medal upgraded to gold after rival Nadzeya Ostapchuk of Belarus had failed a drug test. Ostapchuk’s disqualification means Adams is now the holder of back-to-back Olympic golds…

Full Paddle Ahead for Medal

Full Paddle Ahead for Medal

Full paddle ahead for medalNew Zealander Lisa Carrington, 23, stormed to victory in the inaugural K1 200 on Dorney Lake at the London Olympics to give her country its first women’s Olympic gold medal…

Serene Sailing Wins Gold

Serene Sailing Wins Gold

New Zealand sailors Jo Aleh and Olivia Powrie fulfilled a pledge to go one better than the men by winning gold in sailing’s 470 class at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Aleh and Powrie…

Olympic BMX Dream Comes True

Olympic BMX Dream Comes True

BMX rider Sarah Walker, 24, has won an Olympic silver medal for New Zealand. Walker, who is from Kawerau, finished fourth over the three-race semi-final to win her place in the final. She barely…

Backcountry Kicks

Backcountry Kicks

“Imagine a contest where a helicopter lifts you to the highest peaks in Mount Aspiring National Park, and for two days, you get to ski powder, cliffs, and backcountry kickers,” Megan Michelson writes for…

Lapping Up the Medals

Lapping Up the Medals

New Zealand supporters in London have been enjoying the unusual experience of being ahead in Olympic medals over Australia. At Kiwi House Jessica Middleton, 24, wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the colours of the…

Induction into Hall of Fame

Induction into Hall of Fame

Three-time Olympic gold medallist Opunake-born Peter Snell will be among the 24 inaugural members of the International Association of Athletics Federation’s (IAAF) Hall of Fame. Snell won the 800m at the 1960 Olympics and…

Golden Attitude Prevails

Golden Attitude Prevails

New Zealand’s rowing heroes Dunedin-born Hamish Bond, 26, and Hastings-born Eric Murray, 30, maintained their three-year unbeaten run by winning gold in the men’s pair at the Olympic rowing regatta. Bond and Murray, one…

Medals in Boats and on Horses

Medals in Boats and on Horses

New Zealanders Nathan Cohen and Joseph Sullivan have won an Olympic gold medal in the London 2012 men’s double rowing. Double sculls pair Cohen and Sullivan had the eyes of the nation on them…

Room for Manoeuvre

Room for Manoeuvre

Silver Ferns coach Waimarama Taumaunu is calling for youngsters to make a statement and secure a spot for the international season at the start of the team’s four-year cycle. Taumaunu, 49, has acknowledged inexperience…

Win Over Rivals in London

Win Over Rivals in London

The Black Sticks have beaten Australia at the London Olympics 1-0 in the opening game of the women’s hockey tournament, a first win over their rivals in Games history. The Black Sticks rode on…

Netball Days Continue in US

Netball Days Continue in US

New Zealander Shallyn Reeves captained the first American national netball team at the World University Netball Championships in South Africa this month. When Reeves finished high school in New Zealand and decided to continue…

Watch Out on Dorney Lake

Watch Out on Dorney Lake

New Zealand rowing pair Hamish Bond and Eric Murray are not fully satisfied heading into the London Olympics. Murray says they’ve produced some fast races “but I don’t think we have showed how fast…

Surfing Strength Studied

Surfing Strength Studied

A new study led by Oliver Farley from Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and published in the August issue of The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looks at professional surfers to analyze the…

Triumphant in Sydney Debut

Triumphant in Sydney Debut

Eighteen-year-old Pukekohe jockey Alysha Collett took on the big boys of the Sydney racing scene at Rosehill and emerged triumphant riding the Australian-trained Matiya’s Pride. Collett was invited to Australia by Sydney’s premier trainer…

Hopes for Gold at Olympic Stadium

Hopes for Gold at Olympic Stadium

Like many of the more than 40 Olympians with Michigan ties who’ll compete during the next few weeks at the London Games, New Zealander Nick Willis — who represented the University of Michigan in…

Fresh Look for Blackcaps

Fresh Look for Blackcaps

Mike Hesson has been appointed head coach of the Blackcaps until the end of the 2015 World Cup. Hesson replaces John Wright. Hesson coached New Zealand A sides from 2008-11 and was head coach…

Yarns From the Crease

Yarns From the Crease

Former New Zealand cricket captain Jeremy Coney, who now works as a commentator for Sky TV and Test Match Special, shared stories from his career at Ledbury Cricket Club’s 175th Anniversary celebration dinner in…

Honours at Blackwolf Run

Honours at Blackwolf Run

Fifteen-year-old world top-ranked amateur golfer, Aucklander Lydia Ko, has taken low amateur honours in the U.S. Women’s Open, at Blackwolf Run, Wisconsin. Although Ko is still an amateur, she has not only played with…

Sheer Grit and Determination

Sheer Grit and Determination

New Zealand cyclist Alison Shanks, 29, is profiled in The Wall Street Journal, which introduces athletes from around the world competing in the 2012 London Olympics. “New Zealand’s world champion individual pursuit…

Cricket Council President Named

Cricket Council President Named

New Zealander Alan Isaac has been appointed the eighth president of the International Cricket Council (ICC) succeeding India’s Sharad Pawar. Isaac, the former chairman of New Zealand Cricket, has spent the past two years…

Devastating ABs Stifle Irish

Devastating ABs Stifle Irish

All Blacks Sam Cane and Sonny Bill Williams each scored double tries to inflict a record 60-0 defeat on Ireland and sweep their three-Test series. “We knew we had to start well and we…

Cheap Beginnings and a Title

Cheap Beginnings and a Title

Little Bridge, bred by Des Hawkins’ Llanhennock Trust at Wentwood Grange in Waikato, has became the first New Zealand-bred horse to win at the Royal Ascot meeting, outgunning a class field to…

Fern Hopes for Place in London

Fern Hopes for Place in London

Football Ferns goalkeeper Aucklander Aroon Clansey, 26, who currently plays for English FA Women’s Super League club Liverpool Ladies, is hoping to be in the New Zealand team who will face Cameroon in the…

Golden Oars Row the Isar

Golden Oars Row the Isar

New Zealand has taken third place at the World Rowing Cup in Munich, after winning three golds and six medals. Lightweight women’s double scullers Southland’s Louise Ayling and Rotorua’s Julia Edward took gold finishing…

On From London to Rio

On From London to Rio

Despite pushing his body to breaking point for years five-times world rowing champion Mahe Drysdale cannot resist the lure of an Olympic gold medal. While Drysdale looks forward to the day he can eschew…

Savea Does Us Proud

Savea Does Us Proud

The All Blacks trounced Ireland 42-10 at Eden Park in the first test since winning last year’s World Cup, with 21-year-old winger Julian Savea scoring three tries in his debut for New…

Drafted into the Major League

Drafted into the Major League

Auckland catcher Daniel Devonshire, 19, is “the talk of the Moose Jaw baseball community”, according to Saskatchewan local newspaper reporter Aaron Stuckel. “Devonshire is the third ever baseball player from New Zealand to be…

Flair on the Field

Flair on the Field

“If you are in search of a player that encapsulates a sense of flamboyancy, and something just a little out of the ordinary then, Sonny Bill Williams may just be your man,” Kate Rowan…

Remarkable Command on Tough Track

Remarkable Command on Tough Track

New Zealand IndyCar champion 28-time winner Scott Dixon, 31, took top of the podium at the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix in Detroit. Dixon pulled away on lap 55 for his first win of…

Willis Readies for London

Willis Readies for London

One of New Zealand’s “most revered track and field athletes”, Nick Willis, 29, will defend his Olympic silver medal in the men’s 1500m run at the 2012 Games in London. The London Olympics will…

White Water Wins

White Water Wins

New Zealand 2012 Olympic slalom kayaking team member Mike Dawson has taken first place in the Bud Light Lime Steep Creek Championships at this year’s Teva Mountain Games in Red Cliff, Colorado. Dawson, from…

All Black Across the Board

All Black Across the Board

New Zealand Maori and the national men’s sevens team will be rebranded and known as the Maori All Blacks and All Blacks Sevens, the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) has said, with a change…

Thorn Garners Further Prestige

Thorn Garners Further Prestige

Mosgiel-born lock Brad Thorn, 37, has become the first player to clinch a global three-title sweep of World Cup, European Cup and Super 15 honours, completing the triple when he helped Leinster retain their…

Marshall Shows Them

Marshall Shows Them

Whakatane-born league star Benji Marshall’s goal-kicking “sparked a remarkable come-from-behind win over the Warriors at fortress Leichhardt Oval” beating the Auckland team 24-22. “The experience of Marshall, 27, both with the ball in hand…

Sevens Title Won at Twickenham

Sevens Title Won at Twickenham

New Zealand have retained their Sevens World Series title, ending the season with a third-place spot at the London Sevens to finish on 167 Series points, six ahead of closest rivals Fiji. A record…

Ballistic on AFL Boundaries

Ballistic on AFL Boundaries

New Zealand Olympic hopeful Aucklander Veronica Torr, 24, who is on the brink of qualifying for the London Games in the heptathlon, has been head-hunted by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a boundary…

Standing Out on Court

Standing Out on Court

New Zealand high school basketball player 2.15m- (7 feet 1 inch) Steven Adams, who plays for Notre Dame Prep in Baltimore, is one of the top-ranked players in the Class of 2012 (No. 6…

Cool Little Boost in Dubai

Cool Little Boost in Dubai

Twenty-year-old freestyle motocross rider Levi Sherwood from Palmerston North has won the 2012 Red Bull X-Fighters series opener in Dubai. He finished Australian Rob Adelberg off with a run featuring a mix of old-school…

Pursuit gold for Shanks

Pursuit gold for Shanks

Dunedin-born Alison Shanks, 29, won the women’s Individual Pursuit title beating Britain’s Wendy Houvenaghel by more than two seconds at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Melbourne this month. “It’s a great…