A slice of home at Homebush

By PETER JESSUP

New Zealand Olympians will do a Michael Johnson in Sydney, wearing tailormade shoes in black and white flashing out to the world which country they come from.

It will be the first Games since Helsinki in 1952 where our athletes have worn nationally distinctive footwear.

The shoes for all sports have been supplied by team sponsor Reebok, and are part of a concerted campaign to raise confidence.

Team members are being welcomed into a little slice of home as they filter into the Sydney village. The team of 130-plus competitors, coaches, medics and managers have their own block in the athletes' village next to the main Homebush Stadium, and already have it covered with pictures of home. Every balcony is draped with the New Zealand flag.

Sponsors have provided a mountain of freebies, most carrying the silver fern or Kiwi emblem.

So far, only the yachties, women softballers and the rowing four are in residence, and they all had dinner together on Monday night, enjoying new faces after months of training with the same ones.

Yesterday, they went to the Reebok factory to pick up $2500 worth of street gear and $500-odd of competition strip.

Included are black-and-white competition shoes for all sports, though some have existing contracts with other apparel suppliers.

Outfielder Kim Dermott has started a trend by getting an Olympic tattoo of the five rings, the last with the lace stitching of a ball, with a fern overlaid. Already team-mates are copying it, and two hockey team members have had a similar design drawn with a stick instead of the stitching.

"I'm pretty proud of myself getting here," said the 27-year-old, who has also represented New Zealand at soccer. She is in Sydney after recovering from a full knee reconstruction.

"Mum and Dad aren't that flash on tattoos, but they didn't mind this one. They just told me not to get any more."

The team starts training today and will have pre-Olympic games against Australian club sides. Dermott said the softballers were delighted with the treatment they were getting.

"It's not usual for us - we're poor," he said. "It's good to be here early and get over the 'gee whiz.' We're raring to go."

The rowing four are carrying themselves with the confidence that comes from knowing they have done everything right during a two-year buildup.

Saturday, September 23, shapes as a big day for New Zealand, with world champion and single sculls favourite Rob Waddell contesting his final just after wife Sonia, and the four following.

But team manager Mike Stanley would not talk about three medals. "It would be nice to think so, but we're not counting on anything."

The four have hit all performance expectation marks they set with coach Brian Hawthorne and were relaxed and jovial yesterday.

Their village beds are big enough to accommodate their 2m-plus frames, and that counts for a lot - sleeping is one of the two ways they fill their day when not on the water. Their eating habits have stunned everyone.

"Yeah, they're always grazing," said Hawthorne. "They eat before they go on the water in the morning, they eat big after training, then it's almost lunchtime."

The village food is good, they say. Team managers have been asked to keep an eye on anyone taking too much advantage of the free ice cream and other goods on offer all over the village from sponsors.

The rowers have two boats - the one in which they did so well in Europe recently, which they will use for long sweeps up the Nepean River, and a new one built by Cambridge's Bob Rout at his KIR company, for the 2000m Penrith course. The boats must be good - the Australians have just bought two.

While the four have been training at Karapiro, recording times last Saturday to better their best, the Waddells have been on the Gold Coast canals and the Australian national course at Wyvenhoe.

They move into the village this weekend with about 80 others, including track and field athletes, basketballers and the equestrians.

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