The New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) has presented its 2022 Annual Report at its General Assembly.
Representatives from the NZOC’s 55 member sports were in attendance as NZOC President Liz Dawson thanked the organisations for their commitment to Olympic and Commonwealth sport during a record breaking 2022.
“Together we achieved some exceptional results. Our best ever Olympic Winter Games at Beijing 2022, and a record breaking Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games,” said Dawson.
“To all of the sports involved in those history making campaigns, congratulations and thank you for your dedication to New Zealand’s Olympic and Commonwealth legacies. We also extend our warmest congratulations to New Zealand Team athletes whose culture of Manaaki and performances have inspired us all.”
“As an organisation we work hard to generate revenue and note that the impact of COVID-19 on our financial position cannot be understated. We will continue to identify new ways to bring money into the organization and leverage those opportunities, including growth in our Philanthropic revenues and additional new Commercial Partners for Paris 2024.
“We extend our gratitude to Sport New Zealand and High Performance Sport New Zealand, along with our family of commercial partners, donors and suppliers, for their ongoing support.
“We were pleased to be able to continue to share revenue with our stakeholders, and athletes most importantly, via Olympic Solidarity, the Olympic Foundation and the Athletes'Collective. In 2022 this amounted to more than $2 million dollars of shared revenue.
“On behalf of the NZOC Board we welcome new Board members Dr. Jonathan Coleman and Glen Sowry. We look forward to benefitting from their experience as we head towards the Paris Olympic Games in 2024 and beyond.”
Along with the need for domestic collaboration across the sport sector, Dawson highlighted international relationships as being of vital importance as New Zealand prepares for a huge decade of sport in the build up to the Brisbane Olympic Games in 2032.
“We are working with our colleagues across Oceania to help create a pathway through to both the Victoria 2026 Commonwealth Games and on towards the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games. We also look forward to strengthening our position on the international sporting stage as powerful advocates for integrity, inclusion, athlete voice and excellence on the field of play.”
NZOC Chair Diana Puketapu spoke about the strides made by the NZOC in 2022, including a greater focus on wellbeing and tikanga Māori.
“Our increasing commitment to tikanga Māori and its connection to wellbeing and performance for athletes and team support was evident in 2022 and we look forward to further growth in this area,” said Puketapu.
Puketapu also extended her gratitude to those who help fund the NZOC and our teams to Games.
“I would like to thank our commercial partners, donors and funders for their ongoing support of the New Zealand Team.”
“You make these campaigns possible, and we are extremely grateful for all you do to enable the success of our teams.”
NZOC Board Member Tony Hall was also acknowledged for more than a decade of service as he finished his term on the NZOC board.
“We have been extremely lucky to have had Tony on the NZOC Board since 2012, where he brought a huge amount of knowledge and experience as well as real passion for sport,” said Dawson.
“Around the board table Tony has always been a powerful voice on matters of integrity and has also displayed a deep understanding of the power of sport to create positive societal change.”
The membership then took time to acknowledge those lost to the Olympic and Commonwealth Games movements in 2022, including Sir Murray Halberg.
“No-one ever exemplified the Olympic spirit of triumphing over adversity better than Sir Murray Halberg. He will go down in history as one of our greatest ever Olympians and has left an enduring legacy,” said Dawson.
NZOC Financial Report
The New Zealand Team was honoured in 2022 to be supported by leading New Zealand and international brands as well as a highly valued family of donors, funders and other partners.
The NZOC posted a 2022 deficit of $979,271 which was $165,000 favourable to Budget. Revenue was $17,314,344, of which 33% was from commercial partners, 22% from donors, 20% Games income, 11% HPSNZ and 6% Sport NZ.
The NZOC acknowledges all partners and donors for their investment towards the New Zealand Team and thank them for their ongoing support. Expenditure was $18,218,103, of which Games spend for Beijing and Birmingham was the largest cost, followed by personnel costs, donations to members and Games activations.
The NZOC continues to provide a high level of support to New Zealand athletes and National Federations through programmes and initiatives.
A total of $2,800,000 was distributed by the NZOC in 2022.
Through Olympic Solidarity the NZOC distributed $466,775 to NSOs and athletes in 2022, and more than $2,240,000 to NSOs through the Olympic Foundation in addition to $101,318 to athletes via the Athletes’ Collective.
Dr Jonathan Coleman and Glen Sowry Elected to NZOC Board
Dr Jonathan Coleman and Glen Sowry were elected to the NZOC Board at the General Assembly.
The pair were elected to vacant seats following a recommendation by New Zealand Olympic Committee Board Appointments Panel. The Board Appointments Panel comprises an independent membership and a board representative, and is designed to support the maintenance of an experienced and balanced board.
Dr Jonathan Coleman
Former Minister for Sport and Recreation Dr Jonathan Coleman joins the NZOC Board bringing extensive experience traversing medical practice, business leadership and politics.
Coleman entered politics in 2005 winning the seat of Northcote for National and spent over twelve years in parliament, serving as Minister for Sport and Recreation from 2014-2017, as well as holding the positions of Minister of Health and Minister of Defence. As Minister for Sport he had extensive involvement with the New Zealand Olympic Committee and attended the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics and Rio 2016 Olympics as the New Zealand Government's Representative.
After leaving parliament Coleman was employed as Chief Executive and then Board Director of Acurity Health Group and is now a Board Director and Chair of the Clinical Committee for retirement village operator Metlifecare Ltd.
Glen Sowry, Olympian #848
Glen Sowry brings experience as a Chief Executive, Board Member and Olympian to his new role on the NZOC Board.
Sowry also brings extensive athlete experience to the role having competed in the Tornado event at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games as well as in round the world yacht races.
After making the transition from professional sailing to business, Sowry has served as Chief Executive of three large organisations - Housing New Zealand, Metlifecare, and now Queenstown Airport.
Sowry has previously served on the Yachting New Zealand High Performance Committee and was a Yachting New Zealand Olympic Selector for the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.
New Zealand Olympic Committee Order Holders Named
Three long-time supporters of the New Zealand Olympic Committee have had their service recognised by being named NZOC Order Holders.
Kereyn Smith, Rob Waddell and Pete Wardell were officially named Order Holders at the General Assembly. The Order is an award of merit, recognising outstanding service to the Olympic Movement and/or Commonwealth Sport Movement.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee Order has been presented on only twenty occasions in the past. The recipient’s contributions to New Zealand Olympic and Commonwealth Games sport are detailed below.
Kereyn Smith
Kereyn Smith took up the role of New Zealand Olympic Committee CEO and Secretary General in 2011, bringing a strong focus to integrity, athlete wellbeing and governance.
Kereyn provided strong and stable leadership spanning three Olympic Games (London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020), three Olympic Winter Games (Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018, Beijing 2022) and two Commonwealth Games (Glasgow 2014, Gold Coast 2018).
Under her watch, the NZOC established the Integrity Committee and Te Urunga Tū (the Māori Advisory Committee) and strengthened the capability and responsibilities of the NZOC Athletes’ Commission.
Her commitment to women in sport is among her most notable achievements, establishing the Women’s Sport Leadership Academy in New Zealand and being a founding member of the International Working Group (IWG) on women and sport.
Rob Waddell, Olympian #745
Rob Waddell is an Olympic gold medallist, double world champion single scull rower, three-time Halberg Award winner, New Zealand Team Chef de Mission, and an America’s Cup yachtsman.
Waddell competed at the Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, winning his gold medal in emphatic fashion at Sydney 2000 in the single sculls.
After hanging up the oars, Waddell remained committed to sport, leading the New Zealand Team as Chef de Mission to two Olympic Games (Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020) and two Commonwealth Games (Glasgow 2014 and Gold Coast 2018).
During his tenure as Chef de Mission, Waddell helped to grow the unique culture of manaaki which underpins the New Zealand Team. He also brought an increased focus to athlete wellbeing.
Waddell’s tireless work ethic and commitment to athletes is credited for creating an environment which allowed for some of New Zealand’s most successful Games campaigns.
Pete Wardell
Pete Wardell is a highly regarded sports administrator who led the New Zealand Team on three successive Winter Olympic campaigns as Chef de Mission.
In this role, Wardell was consistently praised by athletes and team support for creating a high performance environment which helped them meet their goals at the Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014 and PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games. In PyeongChang, Wardell oversaw the campaign in which New Zealand won its first Winter Olympic medals in 26 years.
Wardell also worked with our next generation of athletes, leading the New Zealand Team to pre-elite Games including the Commonwealth Youth Games in the Isle of Mann and the Youth Olympic Winter Games in Innsbruck, Austria.
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