Key JohnTUESDAY 23 AUGUST 2016Mr Speaker took the Chair at 2 p.m.Prayers.MOTIONSNew Zealand 2016 Olympic Team—SuccessRt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): I seek leave to move a motion without notice congratulating the members of the 2016 New Zealand Olympic team.Mr SPEAKER: Is there any objection to that course of action being followed? There is none.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I move That this House congratulate the members of our record-breaking Olympic team on their outstanding performance in Rio. These inspiring New Zealanders did their country and themselves incredibly proud. They showed that there is no limit to what Kiwis can achieve when they set goals and work hard to attain them. Seeing New Zealanders not only excel but also carry themselves with such dignity and poise on the world stage reflects incredibly well on New Zealand and is an inspiration to Kiwis young and old.This Government believes that if you give New Zealanders an equal crack on the world stage they are capable of anything. These athletes have shown just that—that you can grow up in a town of several hundred in a country of 4.7 million at the bottom of the South Pacific and you can be a world beater; that it is possible to outrun out-throw out-leap out-shoot out-paddle out-row and out-sail the best that the world has to offer if you are prepared to put in the hard work to make it so; and that there are opportunities for young New Zealand athletes outside of rugby fields and cricket grounds because Rio saw our Olympians top the podium of nine different sports and the 18 medals won represent our best ever medal haul far surpassing the 13 won at Seoul and London in 1988 and 2012 respectively. It also saw us ranked 14th among 205 competing nations in terms of total medals won.We often say—because it is true—that New Zealand punches above its weight on the international stage and it is something that Kiwis can and do take great pride in. Over the past 2 weeks we have witnessed the continued success of established stars like Mahe Drysdale Lisa Carrington and Val Adams and we saw the emergence of new ones. Now young Kiwis can also look up to new heroes like Eliza McCartney Luuka Jones and Tom Walsh. They are just some of the New Zealanders representing us in Rio who set themselves the goal of being the best in the world and who through a mixture of hard work ambition talent belief and grit can now say that they are.Although it is the athletes out there performing they do not do this on their own. They have received amazing support from their coaches physios managers and the staff at High Performance Sport New Zealand—and of course from their families who spent all of that time ferrying their children to sailing regattas to early morning swim training and to gruelling long-distance running practices and who I have no doubt are immensely proud. As a parent I know how much time that takes but also how it feels to stand back and watch your children chase and achieve their dreams.I would also like to praise the New Zealand Olympic Committee for its great work. A special mention must go to the chef de mission Rob Waddell. There is something uniquely Kiwi about his reaction to arriving in Rio to find our athletes' quarters not quite ready. Rather than kicking up a fuss or leaving the hard work up to someone else he rolled up his sleeves along with his team and they put the finishing touches on themselves. This is another example of the humility and work ethic our athletes are so famous for.I was also heartened to see Nikki Hamblin awarded the fair play award from the International Fair Play Committee. Nikki's selfless act—stopping her race to help the injured runner who had also helped her up—captured the hearts of people around the world. She demonstrated not only the Olympic spirit but the sense of fair play that is so much a part of our national character.All this means that the bar has been set high for our Paralympic athletes who start their games in just over 2 weeks and who I am sure will continue to meet those standards. We wish them all the best and they go with our full support.Can I finish by again congratulating all the members of the 2016 Olympic team on their achievements on their work ethic and on the way they represented us. They should take immense pride in that. But while they will no doubt be savouring their success for many the job is not done and they will already be turning their attention to Tokyo in 2020. On the back of their performances in Rio I have no doubt that they will continue to excel. To the athletes: New Zealand is proud of you inspired by you and remains firmly behind you. Today we recognise and we celebrate what has been achieved but tomorrow we will once again focus on what we can do to help you continue to succeed.