Chew The F.A.T

Young Waitakere whizz Kendra Scally Tu'i has made the most of her trip to the West Coast of the USA. On a warm Walnut afternoon at the momentous Mt SAC relays meet the soon-to-be 17-year old won her 100m contest in a stunning 11.57s & claimed second in the 200m posting a national U17, U18, U19 & U20 record of 23.52s. Both times place her thirteenth in the overall standings in NZ athletic history for the respective distances. Scally Tu'i is also adept at touch rugby having just represented the NZ U20 team at a tournament in Australia. Hear her story so far as this wise head on young shoulders navigates her sporting future. 

Fresh from making the 60 metre semi-finals at the World Athletics Indoor Championships, scintillating sprinter Tiaan Whelpton outlines his year ahead that will hopefully lead to the outdoor version in Tokyo come September. Tiaan has been on a tear this summer clocking a New Zealand resident 100m record 10.10s in Auckland & collecting a third consecutive national 100m title in Dunedin on top of his off-shore achievements. He speaks candidly about the challenges of his chosen sport, knowing that the road to Japan won't necessarily be lined with cherry blossoms. 

He's no overnight sensation having been introduced to athletics at the age of two but 21-year-old Lex Revell-Lewis has revved up another gear during the month of Februaryposting personal bests for the 100m, 200m and his premier event the 400m over which he seeks to break a national record set before he was born. The Waitakere wonder tells his story so far on the eve of the 2025 NZ Track and Field Championships. 

Emerging Kiwi middle distance runner Kimberley May has provided Providence with an impressive highlights reel during her time at the Rhode Island College and she's determined to add to it in her remaining months, now as a senior student. May turns 22 in May but is already ranked number three on the all-time list of female New Zealand milers. She began the new indoor season with a bang in Boston recently and coach Ray Treacy has her tracking to finish with a flourish. Hear the story so far and her hopes for the future in the first Chew the F.A.T. for 2025.

Highflyers Boh Ritchie and Maddie Waddell have made great strides in their respective running disciplines in 2024 culminating in a trip to Peru for the World Athletics U20 Championships. The now 17-year-olds were undaunted on the biggest stage of their fledgling careers, and both have established national age-group records in2024 underlining the promise of the St Peters' pair. 

We're back with another special guest on Chew the F.a.T. Alan McDonald is an athletics coach who mentors para athletes, most notably Paralympic multiple medallist Danielle Aitchison. The Waikato stalwart shares his recent experience in Paris, explains athlete classifications, & describes what is required to achieve peak para performance. 

A familiar voice joins the show, Sarah Cowley Ross was behind the microphone in Paris to call home some golden moments from the Olympic games. She gives her perspective on the Kiwi performances from having sat in the best seat in the house. We break it down in 3s from the 33rd olympiad.

We end on the highest of highs with a Gold Medal to Hamish Kerr. What an incredible Track programme it has been, we didn't want it to end. Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

A magical medal moment this morning for Maddi Wesche topped off another stella night of Athletics. Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

It was a record breaking night in Paris and we look back on all the action including some exceptional performances from our Kiwi team. Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

There were plenty of thrills and spills in last nights action. The kiwi's keep us on the each of our seats as well as golden moments across the disciplines. Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Another night of unmissable action from Stade De France including a sHocker win in the 1500m men's. No time for rest though as we see a lot of kiwi's in action overnight tonight. Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. We look back at the kiwis overnight and the highs and lows of the countback system and look forward to more action underway tonight.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The fastest man in the world was crowned in dramatic fashion last night. We review the 100m final as well as look towards a busy day for the Kiwis ahead of us.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. It was a night of firsts in Paris and we review all the action including what could be thee performance of the games so far.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. We review a recording breaking 10,000m Men's final and all the Kiwi action from Stade de France.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Today we forward to our first Kiwi competitors getting their campaigns under way. As well as all the other action, including the first medals on the track.

Chew The F.A.T Hors d'oeuvres are your tasty morsels on a daily basis throughout the Athletics programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Today we pick up where we left off in our last podcast - Walks!

With Paris 2024 just around the corner, we're joined by one of the new crop of NZ athletes making big strides on the Kiwi stage. Jonah Cropp joins us to Chew the F.a.T on the wonderful world of walking ahead of his biggest test yet at the World U20 Championships in Lima.

Long-time coach Kerry Hill recently received the prestigious Arthur Eustace award in recognition of more than 50 years mentoring athletes across many different disciplines.From his reflections as an athlete at the 1974 Commonwealth Games to attaining life membership of the Doha Rugby Club, Kerry's storied life is fully explored in this convivial Chew the F.a.T chat.

March has been a magical month full of mystical moments & lasting memories. From Geordie's Beaming smile indoors to Preston's powerful performance in the cooling rain & every sprinkle of gold, silver & bronze in between. Tony & Mark review a period where Kiwis flew, threw & leapt into the forefront of the national sporting spectrum. Athletics NZ Competition Manager Jason Cameron joins the discussion to give his insight to the upcoming World Cross Country Championships in Serbia. Will the Kiwis make the grade in Belgrade? 

It's not like the F.a.T. Boys to be too PC but to kick off 2024 they're talking Potts, Porritt, Capital & Cooks...classic Kiwi athletic meets every one. With a dash of Australian analysis & a splash of news from further afield it's the recipe for a huge helping of F.a.T. chat from Roso & Rogers as the World Indoor Champs & Olympic Games loom large.

Dunedin dynamo Anna Grimaldi is a two-time Paralympic long jump gold medallist but she struggled with imposter syndrome after finding success so quickly as an athlete. Now as she prepares for Paris we hear from a rejuvenated jumper and sprinter confident about her right to perform on the biggest stage.

At the tender age of 22 Connor Bell has already hurled the discus further than any New Zealander. A youth Olympic & Commonwealth champion he has cleared the chasm to the senior ranks & with every international experience he steadfastly grows in stature. We discuss discus with one of the brightest prospects wearing a Kiwi singlet.

Eleven years after her first national title Sarah Drought has added two more in 2023 & posted PBs over the 10km & half-marathon distances. With two young children & a busy work life, how has she balanced it all to the point of being able to finish in the top 50 in the World Cross Country Championship? Sarah sums up her superb season in less than an hour as we wrap road running results around the world.

As the seasons merge we review the World Athletics Championships where 19 Kiwis were Hungary for success. We also pick out the gems from the Diamond League Final in Eugene. As the cross country season concludes Down Under, young NZ representatives Bella Earl and Jamie Mora talk of their experiences in Australia and their prospective paths to US scholarships.

Murray "Scoop" McKinnon has been to nine World Athletics Championships as a journalist & once held up an International press conference so that a New Zealand champion could speak to the country's leading broadcaster, Paul Holmes. Hear more of Murray's momentous memories & his predictions for this year's 19-strong Kiwi contingent that have made it to Budapest for the 2023 edition.

New Zealand's Para Athletics World Championship team of seven secured nine medals across nine days of competition. Athletics New Zealand's Community Manager Hamish Meacheam, himself a coach of para athletes, reflects on the many highlights in the city of lights. Also a full beam spotlight on Geordie's stupendous steeplechase national record.

One of New Zealand's fastest female sprinters has returned to farm work during her off-season from West Texas A & M University & is turning heads in a Te Awamutu gym with her uniquely tailored workouts. Leah Belfield was born & raised on a dairy farm in rural Waikato. She represented the province in a host of different sports as a youngster but a sprint double in the 2015 NZ Secondary Schools Championship in Timaru propelled the Arohena arrow down an athletics course that is still gathering speed.

Javelin thrower Tori Peeters furthered her national record in Japan recently but the girl from Gore is far from satisfied with being the best in this country. As the world stage beckons Tori talks pointedly about success, failure, disappointment & delight.

Eliza McCartney leapt into our lives in 2016 with a brilliant Olympic bronze as a 19-year-old with a smile as wide as the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Two years later she soared to what is still the world's fifth highest women's vault of all time but there were warning signs of injury troubles which would ultimately cost her a trip to Tokyo & see her effectively start from scratch. Now a rebuilt & renewed athlete has ripped up the runway in 2023 already armed with a ticket to Budapest & beyond.

It may have been eight years since Josh Hawkins had set the New Zealand 110m Hurdles record in Brisbane but when he returned to the same venue in early April the signs were flashing neon that he was in the right shape to shave more from his own national mark. So it proved & now the eight times senior champion can look to the remainder of 2023 with optimism that even faster times are within his stride.

From Boston to Bathurst, the Wanamaker to Wellington, Tauranga terrier Sam Tanner has ripped into 2023 with the vigour you'd expect from New Zealand's leading middle distance man. With the national mile & 1500m titles locked away for the Summer, Tanner takes time out to Chew the Fat with one eye out the window on the tempting surf. At the tender age of 22 he already has Olympic, Commonwealth & World Championship experience that sets him up beautifully for a massive 18 months ahead.

Music to the ears of New Zealand Athletics fans are the performances of some of our finest young exponents of running, jumping & throwing. From Bell to Beamish, Kerr to Elliott & the Olivier brothers it has been an amazing month of rewritten records. Tony & Mark examine the breath-taking feats from our fastest feet in this Summer review of action both home & abroad as one of the most anticipated National Championships in years looms large on the Wellington horizon.

We are back for 2023 and we're joined by big shot Tom Walsh. The Nice Guy of NZ Field & Track chats to us about what makes this Timaru tin thrower tick. He tells us how he went from being average at a lot of things, to a World Champion. His love of smoothies and dislike of broadcast microphones.

As the year comes to an end, we chew over a massive 2022 for New Zealand Field & Track. Then the hosts are put in the hot seat as we learn a bit more about Tony and Mark and share a few laughs along the way. Thank you to everyone who has listened, shared and been a part of the show this year. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did making it. See you all in 2023!

From eastern Southland to the capital city via Texas & New Mexico the story of Hannah Miller is a complex one but when it comes to running, the longer the race the simpler it is for a young woman who has nailed four national titles in 2022 from 10k through to the marathon.

Off the back of a super successful track career of his own that has him high in all-time New Zealand best performances across four sprint disciplines, James Mortimer is plying his craft as a coach. With some of the country's top tearaway talent under his tutelage...think Hobbs, Hulls, Bing, Neal & more...James is jumping every hurdle to ensure that our next generation of speed has the tools to succeed.

In the middle of this year James Preston became the third-fastest Kiwi of all time over 800m. In his sights are two Knights, Sir John Walker & the late Peter Snell. What's his back-story & what does the immediate future hold for the Karori kid?

Commonwealth champion & multiple medallist Julia Ratcliffe gives a glimpse inside the dark arts of the Hammer throw, an athletic discipline that has taken her from a back yard cage in Hamilton to all parts of the world over the last dozen years, driven by her Dad, Dave. Julia outlines her juggle with training & work as an economic analyst for the Reserve Bank & describes her Covid battle on the brink of Birmingham. It was a cloud with a silver lining for the Kiwi golden girl of the ball & chain.

Gear up to for a Marathon episode as we're are joined by Rod Dixon, 50 years on from his bronze medal at the Munich Olympics. He runs us through the highs and lows of his career from boyhood to boycotts and the beers inbetween.

We reach new heights this episode as we're joined by Commonwealth Games gold medalist Hamish Kerr. He tells us how the he went from the bottom of the south Island to the Top of the podium in Birmingham, what's next and why he enjoys "the lazy mans" discipline so much.

Chewing the FAT review the highlights and action with an ABC focus on Athletes, Birmingham and Cali. Mark and Tony discuss the results at the Commonwealth Games and World Under 20 Championships with some interesting recaps & interviews across Throws, Jumps and Track. Who performed and who didn't and how did our medals table stack up?

As we countdown to the Athletics kicking off in Birmingham we talk to Stephen Hollings. The self-professed Track Field statistics guru from Auckland ‘s North Shore is well qualified to ‘Chew the Fat' with us on NZ Team performances at Oregon 2022 and what we can expect from the Commonwealth Games.

On July 7, 1982, British runner David Moorcroft stunned the athletic fraternity by smashing the 5000m world record in Oslo, Norway. In a remarkable front-running performance Moorcroft took nearly six seconds off the previous mark & 20 seconds off his personal best leaving the former holder in his wake. In this episode of Chew the F.a.T, Dave, a close personal friend of host Tony Rogers, talks about the night everything clicked 40 years to the day after the incredible event. Throw in two Commonwealth Games gold medals & a 3000m European record at Crystal Palace that he rates as his greatest ever race, Dave evokes wonderful memories for every fan of middle distance running from a golden era. Moorcroft also reflects on his time as the CEO of UK Athletics & as an athletics analyst & commentator across a host of Olympic Games.

Born to NZ sporting royalty and schooled along side some of our country's finest, it's no wonder Julian Oakley has torn up the track both here and abroad. He takes us through his journey from Tauranga to Rhode Island and back, reflects on some of his greatest races and looks towards the future. July is going to be a huge month for Field and Track, we can't wait for what's ahead.

Maia Ramsden was born in New York, has won age-group titles in New Zealand & Fiji, lived in the Solomon Islands & Ethiopia, and now is being educated at Harvard for which she recently earned Second Team All-American Honors after qualifying for the 1500m final at the NCAA Championships. Her time of 4:12.46 places her inside the top 15 of all time for a New Zealander behind a host of Olympians. This remarkable 20-year-old takes us on a global tour to tell her story thus far & gives an insight to what might be to come. Tony & Mark also recap the NZ Secondary Schools Cross Country in Nelson & highlight more international performances of note from our flying Kiwis.

Author Angela Walker walks us through the writing of "Ideals are Like Stars" the Dame Yvette Williams Story which intimately details the 1952 Olympic champion's sporting & personal life.

In this Marathon episode we talk just that as the team reviews the recent rebooted champs. Then they're joined by throwing guru Shaka Sola, who throws out some good one-liners and spins a few tall tales, as we Chew the F.a.T around the success of the New Zealand throwing scene.

The Chew the F.A.T team bring you a triple treat from across the globe on the South African high veld for this episode. They speak with kiwi born teenager Ethan Olivier who along with his brother Welre, are following in their father's triple footsteps as they both keep hop, step and jumping up the NZ all time ranking lists while eclipsing NZ age group records

Tony & Mark cast an eye stateside noting a host of recent encouraging results for Kiwi athletes & speak to a young Wairarapa woman now based in Vancouver, Alison Andrews-Paul, who has burst into prominence this year with a series of PBs including New Zealand's fifth-fastest 800m of all-time.