He fought for his spot at the Rio Olympic Games and now Kane Radford has thanked those who were behind him all the way.
Radford, 25, returned to his old primary school, Rotorua's St Mary's Catholic School, today to thank the students for the supportive video they made for him during the Olympics.
"Getting the video hit home and made you remember where you come from. It's not hard to come in here and say thank you. As an Olympian, it's my responsibility to give back to my community."
It was Radford's first Olympic Games and he came 19th in the men's 10km swimming marathon.
In the school hall he answered questions from the students and give them an insight to what it was like to compete at the illustrious sporting event.