I watched him win double gold at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and three golds at the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games.
But even with all this heavyweight activity and personnel, New Zealand swimming remain — except for Boyle — waterlogged. Quite what this will mean when it comes to funding time is anybody's guess. The new regime at Swimming NZ have now had time to put plans in place.
Results in addition to Boyle's freestyle success could reasonably have been expected. Instead, they will return home with four medals, including Pascoe's, which is down from the six in Delhi in 2010.
It's a puzzling decline. Boyle is singlehandedly keeping the sport afloat and maintaining the tradition of internationally successful names like Hurring, Mosse, Kingsman and Loader, who was our last medal-winning Olympian in 1996.
Boyle's fourth in London two years ago was as close as New Zealand swimming has come for some time to the Olympic podium.
Video: 'I'm really stoked' - Boyle
It's difficult to put a finger on the reasons why. The upsets in the sport of recent years have been mended. The highly-successful Kiwi cyclists in Glasgow have all made mention of the new, centralised high performance cycling centre as one reason for better results (though theirs is more of a team sport than swimming). Swimming NZ have had their centralised programme at the Millennium Institute for years, dating back to coach Jan Cameron and the problems that some swimmers had with her style.
When the new coaching regime came on board, it was just after the elite swimmers had threatened a walkout in support of recently-resigned coach Mark Regan. But that was nearly two years ago — enough time to have mended wounds and enhanced results.
Nor can it be said more success would follow if Boyle's lead was copied. She rather broke the mould by deciding to train in the US rather than at Millennium. But others have done that. Talented breaststroker Glenn Snyders trains in the US and teenaged backstroker Corey Main is in the collegiate programme at the University of Florida. Freestyler Matt Stanley trains in Australia.
But Snyders' talent seems to be undone by a terrible record in finals, where he often swims slower than in qualifying. Stanley was taken to the London Olympics as a rising star but hasn't yet cracked it. Main is only 19 and a work in progress, as are rising talents like Gabrielle Fa'amausili and 14-year-old Hawke's Bay swimmer Bobbi Gichard.
But that is a long way from a swim squad with a genuinely promising future. In addition, the likes of Daniel Bell and Gareth Kean have faded out of things lately and, more concerningly, Swimming NZ have had little to show for $8 million of taxpayer investment over the past four years — imagine if that was Emirates Team New Zealand.
It must be a worry that the team's biggest names are leaving behind the Millennium, the physical heart of our elite swimming programme.
Swimming is not alone. New Zealand triathlon have suffered a steep decline as well, track and field have lived long in the shadow of the Snell and Halberg days — though it must be said Nick Willis and particularly Valerie Adams have kept that flag flying at Olympic level.
It's a tough problem. Baumann and his team at HPSNZ have a worrying time ahead of them when deciding on funding.
It would not be easy for any former international swimmer to cut funding to the sport which made him famous. But it seems likely. Yet it's enormously difficult to see how cutting funding is going to breathe life back into New Zealand swimming.
