New Zealand competed in the 1980 Summer Olympics in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
,
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nati ...
. In partial support of the US-led
boycott
A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict so ...
, the banner of the
NZOCGA was used instead of its national flag.
Tay Wilson was the chef de mission. New Zealand's then largest team had been nominated with 99 competitors. However, only five New Zealand athletes competed as independents after the
New Zealand government
, background_color = #012169
, image = New Zealand Government wordmark.svg
, image_size=250px
, date_established =
, country = New Zealand
, leader_title = Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
, appointed = Governor-General
, main_organ =
...
applied pressure to support the boycott.
Background
The 1980 Summer Olympics were hosted by the Soviet Union. After the
host country invaded Afghanistan in December 1979, American president
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
called for a boycott of the Moscow Games. On 8 May 1980, the
New Zealand Olympic Committee and Commonwealth Games Association (NZOCGA) accepted the invitation for New Zealand to participate in the Olympic Games. The
Muldoon government stepped in and threatened the NZOCGA with funding cuts and cancelled leave for competitors who were in the
public service
A public service is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through public sector agencies ...
. On 29 May, the NZOCGA announced that no sponsorship or government funds would be used to fund the New Zealand team in Moscow. On 3 June, the NZOCGA announced that it would not send the New Zealand team.
Four athletes decided to go as independents: a modern pentathlete and three canoers.
The decision for the canoers was based on the fact that they did not receive funding from the NZOCGA anyway so were not subject to their (or the government's) threat of funding cuts.
An estimated 200 New Zealand spectators travelled to Moscow in support of the New Zealand team. By the time it became known that New Zealanders competed in two sports only those events had sold out.
Of the other athletes, 61 attended other Olympic Games but the remaining 34 missed out completely; the 34 were:
;Archery
* Garry Wright
;Athletics
*
Karen Page
Karen Page is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She serves as the original love interest for Daredevil, under Matt Murdock's employ as his legal secretary. In 1999, Page was killed by Bullseye, a ...
* Mike Parker
*
Kim Robertson
;Cycling
*
Kevin Blackwell
Kevin Patrick Blackwell (born 21 December 1958) is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He is currently the manager of Thai League 1 club Nakhon Ratchasima.
Ear ...
*
Eric Mackenzie
*
Jack Swart
Jack Swart (born 1954) is a former New Zealand road cyclist.
In the 1978 Commonwealth Games he competed in the 4000m team pursuit, coming 2nd for silver; and the 4000m individual pursuit. .
In the 1982 Commonwealth Games he competed ...
;Gymnastics
* Rowena Davis
;Hockey
* Pat Barwick
* Christine Berry
* Sue Emerson
* Marianne Gray
* Allana Hiha
* Karen Thomas
* Janice Neil
* Judith Phillips
* Gail Rodbourn
* Edith Weber
* Jeff Gibson
;Judo
* David Clark
;Rowing
*
Tony Brook
Anthony Brook is a former New Zealand rower.
At the 1982 World Rowing Championships at Rotsee
__NOTOC__
The Rotsee (previously known as Rootsee) is a natural rowing lake on the northern edge of Lucerne, Switzerland. It is regarded as o ...
*
Alan Cotter
* Stephen Donaldson
* Duncan Holland
*
Peter Jansen
*
Robert Robinson
* Anthony Russell
;Shooting
* Jack Scott
* Wayne Williams
;Swimming
* Melanie Jones
* Paul Rowe
;Yachting
*
Rick Dodson
* Andrew Knowles
* Gerald Sly
Results by event
Canoeing
Modern pentathlon
References
External links
sports-reference
{{1980 New Zealand Olympic team
Nations at the 1980 Summer Olympics
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...
Summer Olympics
The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...