Sport in New Zealand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sport in New Zealand largely reflects its British colonial heritage. Some of the most popular sports in New Zealand, namely rugby, cricket and netball, are primarily played in British Commonwealth countries.
New Zealand's most popular sport is rugby union, the national sport. Other popular sports include cricket, rugby league, soccer and netball (the top ranking female sport by participation); golf, tennis, rowing and a variety of water sports, particularly sailing. Snow sports such as skiing and snowboarding are also popular. Equestrian sports are highly popular especially with women and participation numbers begin to overhaul rugby and other contact sports in older age groups.
[edit] Participation rates
Data on participation rates in sport in New Zealand is published by SPARC (Sport and Recreation New Zealand). SPARC's data can be found at:
This data relates to the period 1997 to 2001. Some care needs to be taken when interpreting it. For example, "Top Sports and Physical Activities" above gives Rugby Union as the fifth most popular sport for New Zealand adult men with 137,100 participants, and soccer as twelfth most popular with 83,800. Neither Rugby Union nor Soccer appear in the top fifteen sports for adult women. On the other hand "Participation in Sport" states that 158,100 New Zealand adults participated in Rugby Union in the previous twelve months and 143,300 New Zealand adults participated in soccer; a difference of 60,000.
The top five sports played in clubs by boys aged 5 to 17 are:
- 17% Soccer
- 16% Rugby union
- 14% Swimming
- 8% Cricket
- 8% Hockey
The top five sports played in clubs by girls aged 5 to 17 are:
- 17% Swimming
- 13% Netball
- 10% Horse riding
- 8% Tennis
- 6% Soccer
The top five sports played by men are:
- 26% Golf
- 15% Cricket
- 14% Tennis
- 14% Touch football*
- 11% Rugby union
* Less physical form of rugby
The top five sports played by women are:
- 11% Netball
- 10% Tennis
- 9% Golf
- 7% Touch football
- 7% Skiing
[edit] Rugby union
Rugby union is popular across all sections of New Zealand society and many New Zealanders associate it with their national identity. It has the largest spectator following of all sports in New Zealand. New Zealand's national rugby team, the All Blacks, has the best winning record of any national team in the world. The All Blacks traditionally perform a haka, a Māori challenge, at the start of international matches. This practice has been mimicked by several other national teams, notably the national rugby league team and the basketball teams.
Outside Test matches, there are three widely followed competitions:
- The Air New Zealand Cup, created in 2006 as a successor to the National Provincial Championship (NPC), involves professional provincial New Zealand teams and occurs mainly during the winter months.
- The Heartland Championship, an amateur competition of lower-level New Zealand provincial teams, also created in 2006 as a successor to the NPC.
- The Super 14 (previously Super 12) is a competition involving teams from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.
[edit] Rugby league
Unlike Australia, where rugby league is the dominant rugby code, rugby union is the more popular code in New Zealand. The New Zealand domestic league is semi-professional and does not enjoy a high profile. However, the Australian National Rugby League (NRL), in which New Zealand Warriors play, is popular. The New Zealand national side have never won the Rugby League World Cup but have been runners-up on two occasions. They lost to Australia in Auckland 1988 and again to the Kangaroos in Manchester 2000.
[edit] Cricket
Cricket is the highest profile summer sport in New Zealand, which is one of the ten countries that take part in Test match cricket. The national competition is not nearly as widely followed as the case with rugby, but international matches are watched with interest by a large proportion of the population. This parallels the global situation in cricket, whereby the international game is more widely followed than the domestic game in all major cricketing countries. Historically, the national cricket team has not been as successful as the national rugby team. New Zealand played its first test in 1930 but had to wait until 1956 to win its first test. The national team began to have more success in the 1970s and 1980s. New Zealand's most famous cricketer, the fast bowler Richard Hadlee who was the first bowler to take 400 wickets in test cricket, played in this era. Although traditionally New Zealand have had one of the strongest sides they have never progressed past the semi-finals of the Cricket World Cup where they ended up five times, the semi-finals of the Commonwealth Games and the semi-finals of the Pro20 World Championship. However New Zealand's Woman's Cricket Team has reached the World Cup finals.
[edit] Netball
Netball is the most popular women's sport both in terms of participation and public interest in New Zealand.[1] As in many netball-playing countries, netball is considered primarily a women's sport, with men's netball largely ancillary to women's competition. The sport maintains a high profile in New Zealand, due in large part to its national team, the Silver Ferns, which, with Australia, has remained at the forefront of world netball for several decades. In 2008, netball in New Zealand became a semi-professional sport with the introduction of the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The sport is administered by Netball New Zealand, which registered 125,500 players in 2006.[2]
[edit] Soccer
Soccer (also known as "football" or "Association football") is less popular in New Zealand than in most other countries. The New Zealand national soccer team has qualified for the FIFA World Cup only once, in 1982; it was knocked out in the first round. The country's only professional soccer team, Wellington Phoenix FC, plays in the A-League which is otherwise an all-Australian competition. The sport is administered by New Zealand Football, which changed its name from "New Zealand Soccer" in 2007 to move in line with common usage around the world. The two major domestic competitions are the New Zealand Football Championship which is played between eight regional teams, and the Chatham Cup which is knock-out competition played between clubs. Neither the Phoenix nor the NZFC franchises play in the Chatham Cup. Soccer is especially popular amongst boys and girls, and is the second most popular participation sport for both boys and girls (aged between 5 and 17 years old) in New Zealand.[3]
[edit] Basketball
The Tall Blacks competed at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and finished with a 1-5 record, their only win coming against Angola in the playoff for eleventh.
In 2001 they defeated Australia in a three-game series to qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis. At the tournament they finished fourth, after beating Puerto Rico in the quarter-finals before losses to Yugoslavia and Germany. Tall Blacks captain Pero Cameron was the only non-NBA player named to the all-tournament team in Indianapolis.
The Tall Blacks qualified for the 2004 Athens Olympics but again finished with a 1-5 record and lost to Australia in the playoff for ninth place. Their most noted moment was on the 7th day of the games, when they beat Serbia and Montenegro (the world champions) 90:87.
The Tall Blacks went on a South-American tour in 2006 as a lead up to the FIBA Basketball World Championships. They played Argentina (Olympic Champions and runners up in 2002 FIBA Championships), Brazil and Venezuela. They played four games against each country. The Tall Blacks got swept by Argentina and Brazil. They only managed one win against Venezuela but still loss the series 3-1.
2006 FIBA World Championships In 2006, a few months before the FIBA world championships. The Tall blacks took on the Australian Boomers in a post-tournament 4 game series. The Tall Blacks won a 2 game tie by points difference. The Tall Blacks also swept Qatar in a 2 game match up post tournament as well.
In 2006, the Tall Blacks were not to repeat their fourth-place finish as in 2002. Instead, they finished in the final 16 of the FIBA Basketball World Championships, after a second round loss to Argentina, 79-62 which knocked them out of the tournament.
After that disappointment, Tab Balwin resigned as the coach of the Tall Blacks, and the position was, as ,expected, replaced by Nenad Vucinic, his long time assistant coach. The Tall Blacks just managed to make it to the final 16 as they were beaten by: Spain, 86-70 (New 2006 FIBA World Champions), Germany, 80-56, Angola, 95-73.
Their only wins coming from: Panama, 86-75 Japan, 60-57.
The Tall Blacks 'fourth place' spot went to Argentina, the very team who knocked them out, and swept them in the post tournament series.
Probably the most well-known former New Zealand Tall Black player in the National Basketball Association is Phoenix Suns forward Sean Marks, who is in his fifth NBA season. Another New Zealand player, former University of Wisconsin-Madison star Kirk Penney, signed in 2005 with two-time defending Euroleague champions Maccabi Tel Aviv.
[edit] Horse racing
Although its popularity has waned in recent years, horse racing (or just racing) is often considered to be one of the three Rs of New Zealand culture (the others being rugby and beer). It is principally associated with gambling. The various cup days in the major cities attract large crowds.
[edit] Tennis
New Zealander Anthony ("Tony") Frederick Wilding was the World No. 1 player in 1913.
[edit] Golf
New Zealand's Michael Campbell won the 2005 U.S. Open Golf Championship.
The New Zealand Amateur team of Philip Tataurangi, Michael Campbell, Steven Scahill and Grant Moorehead won the Eisenhower Trophy (World Amateur team event) in 1992 in Vancouver.
[edit] Olympic Games
The country achieves well on a medals-to-population ratio at the Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games; see New Zealand Olympic Committee, New Zealand Olympic medalists and New Zealand at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
New Zealand's most celebrated Olympian is probably middle distance runner Peter Snell, who won three gold medals and broke several world records during the 1960s.
[edit] Motorsport
There are many levels of competitive motors sport series in New Zealand, which are most simply broken down into watersports (hydro-planing, jetski racing and thundercat racing), automobile racing (Club and national level circuit racing and rallying, with some international events, as well as speedway) and finally motorcycle racing (street, circuit and dirt/motocross).
To date, New Zealand has seen one Formula One World Champion, Dennis Hulme, in 1967. Three other New Zealanders have raced at Grand Prix level: Bruce McLaren (four wins), Chris Amon and Howden Ganley. Bruce McLaren founded the McLaren racing team, which was named after him.
New Zealand has many drivers currently competing on the world stage: Greg Murphy and Paul Radisich are among several drivers who contest the Australian V8 Supercar Championship, which holds a round in New Zealand each year. Until 2006, this was held at the Pukekohe circuit, with the race moving to Hamilton, New Zealand, where it will be contested on a street circuit.
Rallying is a popular sport at all levels in New Zealand, and hosts rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship and Asia-Pacific Rally Championship each year. A highly competitive national championship is run each year, and some drivers also take part in the Australian Rally Championship, most notably the late Possum Bourne, who was a seven-times Australian Rally Champion.
Over Easter weekend each year, the "Race To The Sky" hillclimb (otherwise known as the "Goldrush" hillclimb) is held in Queenstown, South Island. Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima, Possum Bourne and Rod Millen are all previous winners.
On January 21, 2007, Taupo Motorsport Park hosted the sixth race in the 2006-07 A1 Grand Prix season.
Barry Briggs is a New Zealand motorcyclist who won four individual world speedway titles from 1957 to 1966 and took part in a record 87 world championship races. He was an individual world champion from 1957 to 1958, in 1964, and in 1966. He was a team world champion in 1968 and 1971. Briggs was British League Riders champion from 1965 to 1970.
[edit] America's Cup
Auckland hosted consecutive America's Cup regattas in 2000 and 2003. In 2000, Team New Zealand successfully defended the trophy they won in 1995 in San Diego, but in 2003 they lost to a team headed by Ernesto Bertarelli of Switzerland whose Alinghi was skippered by Russell Coutts, the expatriate Kiwi who helmed the victorious Black Magic in 1995 and New Zealand in 2000. Coutts and Brad Butterworth, along with several other Team New Zealand members, defected to Bertarelli's Alinghi team, taking with them a wealth of experience that allowed the new team to win the America's Cup on the first challenge. Coutts was later dismissed from the Alinghi team; he fought a court battle with Bertarelli to allow him to sail in the 2007 America's Cup contest in Spain, but reached a settlement that kept him out of that contest.
[edit] Equestrian
Equestrian sportsmen, sportswomen and horses make their mark in the world, with Mark Todd being chosen international "Horseman of the Century", and many juniors at pony club level.
[edit] Hockey
In New Zealand "hockey" refers to field hockey (as opposed to ice hockey) and is popular with both genders. New Zealand's men's' and women's teams are both known as the "Black Sticks". The best result attained thus far by the men was a gold medal at the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics (beating arch-rivals Australia). The best placing by the women thus far has been a 4th placing at the 1986 Women's Hockey World Cup.
The men's' team is currently ranked by the FIH at 10th in the world[4], and the women's team ranked at 7th[5].
[edit] Gliding
New Zealand is famous among glider pilots for hosting the 1995 World Gliding Championships at Omarama in North Otago near the centre of the South Island. The Southern Alps are known for the excellent wave soaring conditions. Steve Fossett has recently tried to beat the world gliding altitude record there (see Gliding New Zealand and external links below).
[edit] Orienteering
Orienteering is a popular sport in New Zealand that combines cross-country running with land navigation skills in the woods. Variations of the sport popular in New Zealand include bicycle orienteering, ski orienteering, and rogaines. Orienteering is a popular sport for youth and juniors, and New Zealand regularly sends competitors to both the World Orienteering Championships and the Junior World Orienteering Championships. Orienteering in New Zealand is organized by the New Zealand Orienteering Federation.
[edit] Australian rules football
Australian rules football is a fast-growing sport in New Zealand, with programs established in Auckland, Canterbury, Waikato and Wellington. The governing body of footy in New Zealand is the New Zealand AFL.
New Zealand's national side are nicknamed the Falcons and they have been no stranger to success, winning the 2005 International Cup and coming third in 2002.
New Zealand AFL currently has more than 500 senior players and 15,000 juniors. They are regarded as one of the "top three" Aussie Rules nations outside Australia, the others being South Africa and Papua New Guinea.
[edit] Squash
Susan Devoy from New Zealand won the World Open Championship a record three times, in 1985, 1987, and 1990. She also won seven consecutive British Open titles from 1984 to 1990, and an eighth in 1992.
[edit] New Zealand national teams
[edit] National team colours
New Zealand's national sporting colours are not the colours of its flag, but are black and white (silver). The silver fern is a national emblem worn by New Zealanders representing their country in sport.
[edit] National team names
The national men's rugby team is known as the "All Blacks" rather than the New Zealand rugby team; the national women's netball team is known as the "Silver Ferns". Historically, rugby and netball dominated team sport in New Zealand, and the national teams of other sports have acquired names which have been formed with reference to these two (see list below). The women's rugby team is known as the "Black Ferns", rather than the "All Silvers". Some of these names seem to have arisen as genuine nicknames (e.g. "Tall Blacks", "Wheel Blacks"), and some are neologisms developed as marketing devices (e.g. Black Sticks (hockey), Black Caps (cricket)). New Zealand Badminton temporarily named their teams "Black Cocks" [1]. The men's national soccer team is called the "All Whites" as they play in an all-white strip. At the time the national soccer team was formed, an all-black strip would not have been allowed.
Two notable exceptions to the "All Ferns" naming schema are the Kiwis (men's Rugby League) and SWANZ (the name formerly used for women's soccer).
- Badminton - Temporarily Black Cocks, now no official nickname.[6]
- Men's Australian rules football - Falcons
- Men's Basketball - Tall Blacks
- Women's Basketball - Tall Ferns
- Men's Cricket - Black Caps
- Women's Cricket - White Ferns
- Men's Field hockey - Black Sticks Men
- Women's Field hockey - Black Sticks Women
- Men's League - Kiwis
- Women's League - Kiwi Ferns
- Netball - Silver Ferns
- Men's Rugby union - All Blacks
- Women's Rugby union - Black Ferns
- Wheelchair Rugby - Wheel Blacks
- Men's Soccer - All Whites
- Women's Soccer - formerly SWANZ, now Football Ferns
- Men's Softball - Black Socks
- Men's Gridiron - IronBlacks
- Men's Ice Hockey - Ice Blacks
- Women's Ice Hockey - Ice Fernz
[edit] References
- ^ Phillips, Jock (2007-09-23). Sports and leisure. Te Ara – the encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved on 2007-11-18.
- ^ 2006 Netball New Zealand Annual Report. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ Top sports and physical activities. SPARC (2007-10-16). Retrieved on 2008-05-16.
- ^ FIH Men's Rankings as at 10 December 2007
- ^ FIH Women's Rankings as at 18 September 2007
- ^ "Badminton: Black Cocks name reconsidered", New Zealand Herald, 14.9.2005. Retrieved on 2006-01-23.
[edit] External links
- Participation in Sport URL accessed on 23 January 2006
- Top Sports and Physical Activities URL accessed on 23 January 2006
- SPARC Facts complete (pdf) URL accessed on 23 January 2006
- New Zealand Orienteering Federation URL accessed on 23 January 2006
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||
