Hear Temepara Bailey, Jeff Wilson, Maia Lewis, Martin Sneddon, Dr Dan Exeter, Les Elder, Wendi Henderson and Andy Boyens speak about how they put young people first.

The champions help influence positive change in youth sport by sharing their Balance is Better stories with their networks, at events they attend out in the sport sector and within the sporting organisations they are involved with.

Sophie Devine and Kane Williamson share their experiences on growing up playing multiple sports and how it’s shaped them into the people and athletes that they are today.

Gemma McCaw, former Black Stick Hockey player, talks about her role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion

Andrew Ellis, Canterbury Cricket player and former Black Caps player, talks about his role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion.

Lara Andrews, New Zealand Softballer, talks about her role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion.

Rebecca Dubber, para-swimmer and Olympic bronze medalist, talks about her role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion.

Wendi Henderson, New Zealand Footballer, talks about her role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion.

Les has been involved in a range of sports and physical activity including netball, touch rugby, squash, cross fit and rugby.  They have all taught her different skills and helped make her the player she is today.

Are we expecting young people to all develop at the same rate? Dane Lett, Black Sticks hockey player and Head of Hockey at Wellington Hockey, believes we are doing our youth and our future sporting potential a disservice by focusing on selection at an early age.

Athletes Voice Productions (NZ) is an athlete lead creative content production company delivering the 10 golden rules for being an awesome sport parent. 

COVID-19 has meant thousands of Kiwi kids have missed out on sport and the wellbeing benefits it provides. As we move closer to the return of community sport, coaches will play a critical role in inspiring, connecting and caring for young people as they reintegrate back into their community sporting experiences.

As a Balance is Better Champion and former Tall Black, Dillon believes the benefits he received from playing multiple sports and keeping it fun led to his success on the basketball court.

As a Balance is Better Champion and all-round athlete, Ameliaranne’s passion is to encourage young people to try multiple sports and be authentically who they are.

Mike Dawson, K1 paddler and internationally renowned for his extreme kayak feats, talks about his role as a Sport New Zealand Balance is Better Champion.

If we can provide quality experiences for all young people in sport, more will stay involved for life.

• Childhood success does not reliably predict adult success
• Identifying athletes and specialising early is taking its toll on young people
• A focus on development should be emphasised over winning

Too many young New Zealanders are being driven away from sport. It’s important we understand the reasons young people are walking away to help keep them in the game. Watch the series of videos at the link below.

Keep Up With The Play Campaign: Are we forgetting why they play sport?

A Keeping Up With The Play campaign video featuring Dr Dan Exeter

A Keep Up With The Play campaign video featuring Les Elder

Wayne Goldsmith is a Speaker, Author, Mentor and Coach who's been an influential thought leader in sport around the world for more than a quarter of a century.

Ken Martel from USA Hockey was the keynote presenter, sharing his success story on similar system changes they made 10 years ago to improve participation numbers. This video shows some highlights from the day.

"When one person teaches, two people learn". Watch Dr Wade Gilbert present at Connecting Coaches 2015.

Raising the bar in coaching youth sport - In this webinar replay, Sport NZ and Dr. Sergio Lara-Bercial talk about: What great youth sport coaching looks like, The current climate of youth sport around the world and introduce the iCoachKids Coach Pledge.

Ken Martel, of USA Hockey, discusses how we can transform quality experiences for all our young athletes.

Get more from sport: A campaign promoting multi-sport play.

Sport Scotland on Understanding Talent

In September 2019 Sport NZ and five of the country’s largest participation sports took a stand to bring the fun and skills development focus back into the game for all young people.

In this Q&A video, Sport Development Consultant Kelly Curr talks to Neuroscience Trainer Kathryn Berkett to unpack why and how sport can be such a great place for young people to learn resilience.

Watch Dr Ralph Pim discuss Coaching and Coaching for Character on the SportNZ YouTube channel.

Wayne Goldsmith, who has over 25 years of experience working with coaches, athletes, teams and sporting organisations, talks about the key role parents play in kids’ sport.

Connecting Coaches conference playlist held in Auckland in December 2015.

In this video by BeSportive we hear from Dan Carter, Melodie Robinson, Phil Tataurangi, Anna Stanley, Ross Taylor, Dillon Boucher, Maia Jackman, Anna Lawrence, Eroni Clark, Warren Gatland and Monty Beetham about how sport coaches can create the best experiences for young Kiwis.

Sport Waikato shares insights into how adults can create a great sporting experience for our young people.

This video outlines a few of the valuable reasons we need to ensure we respect and value our coaches across codes around the country.

Industry experts sharing tips for coaches, administrators and parents on how they can make a real difference for all young people in sport across Aotearoa. 

Young women aren’t young men. Yes – irrespective of gender, there are some universal truths to what makes a great youth sport leader.

We know that sport parents are faced with many dilemmas and difficult decisions when it comes to supporting their children in sport.