By Ross Karl
With 13 Olympic medals and the All Blacks as world champions, elite New Zealand sport is looking healthy.
So it is the same at a junior level?
A survey of five to 18-year-olds, released today, says yes, with nine out of ten kids participating in organised and informal sport.
Sport NZ CEO Peter Miskimmin says the organisation’s aim is to help children get involved.
“We're the fun factory, what we do is help [kids] participate in sport and recreation as much as possible,” he says.
Mr Miskimmin says kiwi kids are amongst the most sporting in the world, with the highest participation in running and swimming. Traditional team sports like football, rugby and netball are in the top ten.
But he says the survey also pointed out weaker areas.
“Young girls ... The 15-to-18-year-olds are dropping away. There is some ethnic information we've got around our growing Asian population where they're probably the most inactive,” he says.
Miramar Central School principal John Taylor-Smith says making sure girls stay active into their teens isn't easy.
“Body perception is changing, the perception of who you are is changing, and I think if those things take over from being yourself and doing what you want to do - that's what we need to look at to get more girls involved in sports,” he says.
Measuring desires is a major part of the survey, so if Sarah Walker inspires young cyclists, Sport NZ will respond in kind.
That way more kiwis will reach the pinnacle of their sport.
3 News