Robertson GrantMOTIONSNew Zealand Winter Olympic Team 2022—CongratulationsHon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister for Sport and Recreation): I seek leave to move a motion without notice congratulating the New Zealand Winter Olympic team.SPEAKER: Is there any objection to that course of action? There appears to be none.Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I move That this House congratulate the New Zealand Winter Olympic team for their outstanding achievements at the Beijing Winter Olympics. With two golds medals and one silver medal placing New Zealand 17th on the medal table the 2022 Winter Olympics were the country's most successful ever. Throughout the Winter Olympics our team of 15 athletes nine men and six women competing in five sports kept New Zealand enthralled with their gutsy performances which included for the first time ever two Winter Olympic gold medals from Zoi Sadowski-Synnott in the women's snowboarding Slopestyle and freestyle skier Nico Porteous who claimed victory in the men's Halfpipe competition.Zoi Sadowski-Synnott's additional silver medal in the women's snowboarding Big Air proved her dominance in her sport. Over the last four years since she won bronze in the women's Big Air at the 2018 Winter Olympics. This has made her over the last four years and in this competition one of the best snowboarders in the world. To win New Zealand's first Winter Olympic gold medal on Waitangi Day gave Zoi's achievement a special place in our sporting history. Her courage and determination to win on the final run of the competition was an extraordinary effort and a moment that New Zealanders will never forget.Not to be outdone by Zoi's achievements 20-year-old Nico Porteous' gold medal saw him become the youngest New Zealander to win a Winter Olympics medal overcoming some very windy and wild conditions during his competition. It was the culmination of an incredible four years since the 2018 games where he also won bronze. Since that time he has consistently been on the podium at international events and as has Zoi as well innovated with new tricks that pushed the boundaries of their sports.I'd also like to acknowledge all the other members of team who gave it everything and delivered fantastic performances proving that we have raft of young talent making its way through the ranks and inspiring the next generation of Kiwi snow sports stars. We are immensely proud of our athletes who rose above the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic including the challenge of competing without friends and whānau on the side lines for their events and we acknowledge those friends and whānau as well.I also want to acknowledge the support staff on the ground who played a critical role in the success of our team at these games. In particular I'd like to mention chef de mission Martin Toomey and his team. Marty was formerly the chief executive of Snow Sports New Zealand and was part of the long-term planning and development that lay behind the success at these games. I want to acknowledge the whole snow sports New Zealand team the New Zealand Olympic Committee High Performance Sport New Zealand and Sport New Zealand for their critical role in these stunning achievements.On behalf of the Government our congratulations to all the members of the 2022 New Zealand Winter Olympic team. They have made us extremely proud and are an inspiration to all New Zealand. Now we can look forward to the Winter Paralympics starting later this week where our New Zealand para-athletes will compete in the para - alpine ski events and no doubt will continue to make New Zealanders proud.SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be agreed to.