Norman Read was an Olympic gold medal-winning race walker who helped to popularise the sport in New Zealand.
Born in Portsmouth, England, Norman Read spent his adolescence in the United Kingdom, emigrating to New Zealand in his early twenties. While in the UK he completed an apprenticeship as a carpenter.
Initially Read was an underwhelming race walker. However, when international rules changed to favour road walking over track walking, the longer distances better suited Read. In 1956 he won New Zealand titles in both the 20-kilometre and 50-kilometre races.
Ted Morgan was a boxer and a plumber, and was the first New Zealander to win an Olympic gold medal.
Born in London, England, an infant Morgan and his parents emigrated to New Zealand. Attending Wellington College, he became a promising boxer, finishing second in the college bantamweight championship in 1921 and the same in the lightweight class the following year.
Arthur Lydiard was a marathon runner and athletics coach, whose most notable students included Olympic and Commonwealth Games champions. He is also credited with stimulating enthusiasm for jogging worldwide.
As a teenager in Christchurch, Peter Mander developed his yachting skills on the Sumner estuary. Mander would go on to win 16 national yachting titles in eight different design classes between 1945 and 1985.
Peter Mander won 16 national yachting titles in eight different design classes between 1945 and 1985, including New Zealand's first Olympic gold medal in a yachting pursuit.
In 2008 well-known sports writer Joseph Romanos chose the victory of the 1972 rowing eight as the best team performance by New Zealanders at the Olympics.
John Walker is one of New Zealand's track heroes. His athletic career was punctuated by memorable performances and noted for its longevity. While the bulk of Walker's success occurred during the 1970s, he continued footing it with the best in the decade or so that followed.
New Zealand athletes prepare for the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Canada. Among the athletes featured are Olympic gold medallists Yvette Williams and Murray Halberg.
