With a total of 18 medals including four gold, nine silver and five bronze, New Zealand athletes have won more medals than any other New Zealand Olympic Team in history and have showcased New Zealand's ability to perform in a wide range of sports at the very highest level.
The medals have been won across nine sport disciplines including athletics, cycling track, canoe/kayak sprint, canoe/kayak slalom, golf, rowing, rugby sevens, sailing, shooting.
Additional to the field of play results, middle-distance runner Nikki Hamblin was awarded the International Fair Play Award and the team was able to donate 6,000 items of clothing, various sporting equipment and 1500 spectator tickets to disadvantaged members of the Mangueira community (favela) as well as spend time coaching children.
Olympian Sarah Walker was also elected to the IOC as an Athletes' Commission representative.
Waddell, for whom Rio 2016 was his first as Chef de Mission, said he believed many of the performances of the New Zealand athletes at Rio would inspire generations of New Zealanders to come.
"From the supremacy of Hamish Bond and Eric Murray's performance, Lisa's back to back gold and the nail-biting finish that confirmed Mahe's success to team captains Blair Tuke and Peter Burling securing their gold medal two races before the end of competition, our gold medalist performances will are now etched on the consciousness of our nation.
"Valerie Adams' silver medal was also incredibly impressive as she overcome serious injury to fight her way back to a season's best and medal-winning performance at Olympic Stadium in Rio. The cycling men's team sprint team showed their grit to get silver in what proved to be a highly competitive track cycling environment. Luuka and Natalie showed how New Zealand can perform in a wider range of sports and their silver medals really engaged the nation early on in the games and who didn't love Lydia's hole-in-one that spurred her on to silver."
