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Kiwi Special Olympians going for gold in Berlin
Thirty-nine New Zealand athletes are on Wednesday boarding a plane for Berlin to compete in the Special Olympics.
For many of the competitors – who have intellectual disabilities – the quadrennial event is their first time away from their families, as they chase coveted gold medals and life experiences.
Swimmer Jesse Williams was competing in his first games, although he was a veteran sportsman. He looked fit and lithe as he talked to RNZ beside a Palmerston North swimming pool before a training session.
Previously a long-distance swimmer, he was entering the 25- and 50-metre freestyle events. He expected to swim the shorter distance in 16 seconds and the longer one in the 30s.
To get there, coach Carla L’Huillier put him through his paces twice a week, and he trained outside of this – in the pool and in the gym.
Jesse Williams’ coach Carla L’Huillier says he has the ability to go fast. Photo: RNZ / Jimmy Ellingham
In swimming terms, the 37-year-old, who has Down syndrome, is a veteran.
“I’ve been swimming for 23 years now. It’s good exercise. I get fit.”
He was definitely that and L’Huillier, travelling to Germany as the New Zealand team’s swimming coach, rated his chances.
“He’s one of our fastest guys. We’ve just got to keep him on track. He doesn’t train very fast, but he races really well, which is one of the good things about him.”
Special Olympics were about more than sport, L’Huillier said.
“It’s how much the athlete grows because they go away and they’ve really got no idea what it’s going to be like, and suddenly they’re in a stadium with 7000 other people.
“It’s really cool. It’s like the Olympics. You come in and you’re waving and everyone’s cheering for New Zealand.”
Ten-pin bowler Josh Ryan has experienced that before. These are the Palmerston North 41-year-old’s fourth games.
Berlin is Josh Ryan’s fourth Special Olympics. He’s part of the ten-pin bowling team. Photo: RNZ / Jimmy Ellingham
“It’s the world Summer Games. In bowling, there are four people.”
After regular weekly practice at a local lane, he said his form was “really good”.
Three-a-side basketballer Hayden Wilson was a man of few words off the court, but on it he showed off the skills he had honed after months of hard work, including regular dribbling practice on his Palmerston North driveway.
Hayden Wilson’s part of New Zealand’s three-a-side basketball team. Photo: RNZ / Jimmy Ellingham
The athletes have each raised thousands to get to Berlin, and Wilson had spent hours manning sausage sizzles between training to get him there. Step-father Ron Smith said the experience helped Wilson come out of his shell.
“It’s had a big impact on his life. It’s given him confidence and the ability – because of his autism – to talk to strangers.
“I also believe that when he goes to Berlin, when he comes back he’s going to be a really changed person.”
The Special Olympics opening ceremony, to be televised globally, is on Sunday, 19 June, New Zealand time.
VIA RNZ
The chief executive of the Parliamentary Service is confident there will be enough room to accommodate the increased number of MPs and their staff coming into Parliament.
On current numbers, up to 131 MPs could be sitting in the Chamber following the election, brought on by a record overhang result.
Clerk of the House of Representatives Dr David Wilson told the Spinoff that currently the debating chamber had enough chairs to seat 124 MPs – including the Speaker of the House – and work was being done to accommodate more by altering the seating arrangement.
In a statement, Parliamentary Service chief executive Rafael Gonzalez-Montero said planning for a larger Parliament had been going for “some time”.
“Now that the election results have confirmed an increase to the number of members we are looking at several options.
“We are confident we will be able to accommodate all members within the Chamber.”
VNP / Phil Smith
Gonzalez-Montero said office accommodation for members and their staff would be “stretched” for a short time, but the new Members’ Building was only a few months away from “practical completion”.
That building – located behind Parliament – was due to be ready to occupy in April next year and had capacity to accommodate around 30 backbench MPs.
“All members should be in fit-for-purpose accommodation from that point,” Gonzalez-Montero said.
Following the 2023 election, 123 MPs sat in the Chamber – a record number at the time. That decreased to 122 following the resignation of National MP Judith Collins.
Collins held the seat of Papakura and stepped down in May and Parliament voted against holding a by-election because it was too close to the election.
The election result also meant high-ranking National Party MPs like Chris Bishop, Paul Goldsmith, Nicola Willis and Gerry Brownlee – Speaker of the House and an MP for 30 years – would likely not make it back into Parliament.
Only resigning or retiring MPs were permitted to give a valedictory speech meaning none of them would get the chance to give a valedictory statement.
Asked if their would be special allowances for valedictories, Wilson said in a statement that normally only MPs were allowed to speak in the House but the House could suspend its own rules or temporarily alter them.
“It could do so to allow former members to address the House.”
Wilson said no such arrangements could be made until the next Parliament opened and members sworn in.
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