During the fifteen-week COVID lockdown Swimwatch posted stories about swimming, cycling and canoe racing. By focusing on the death of Olivia Podmore or the savage treatment of Alan Thompson, Swimwatch has continued the myth that the problems of each sport happen in isolation. The mainstream media do the same thing. They file a report on the death of Olivia Podmore. And the next day post 700 words on the dispute between Alan Thompson and Canoe Racing New Zealand (CRNZ). And then in a few weeks a separate story on the Human Rights Review Tribunal’s (HRRT) decision in my case.

All this is good stuff and needs to be reported. However, the way it is covered misses the most important and dangerous feature of all. The problems we report are linked. Olivia Podmore, Alan Thompson and David Wright have features in common. That commonality is killing New Zealand sport. The commonality comes from the top – from Sport New Zealand (SNZ) and High Performance Sport New Zealand (HPSNZ). The failure of individual sports is not the responsibility of the CEO of Swimming New Zealand, Steve Johns, or the CEO of Cycling New Zealand (CNZ), Jacques Landry or the CEO of CRNZ, Tom Ashley. Those three have naively followed explicit or, most often, unspoken policy/orders from Mislimmin or Castle’s Wellington or Auckland offices.

That is the real story. That is where the damage is being done. The death of Podmore, the Thompson accusations and my HRRT case are linked by a common parent. Castle or Miskimmin gave the orders, created the atmosphere, that resulted in the disasters we have been reporting.

Another example of linkage occurred today. Stuff journalist, Zoe George, reported the following.

“The turbulent times continue for Cycling New Zealand, with its main sponsor APL Windows, owner of Vantage, ending its deal. The non-renewal of the commercial partnership brings a close to six years of sponsorship.”

After six years sponsorship the name of CNZ became associated with the mistreatment of athletes, hush-money payments and the death of Olivia Podmore. Vantage clearly didn’t want to pay $1.0million a year to be linked with all that and pulled the plug.

Now see if this next example looks familiar. Between 2010 and 2014 Swimming New Zealand’s principal sponsor was State Insurance. Then in 2014 the Swimming New Zealand Annual Report said this.

“State Insurance’s marketing strategy was reviewed and they decided swimming was not a priority.”

What actually happened was Swimming New Zealand were responsible for the Lake Taupo Open Water Championship. Instead of providing elderly officials with lifejackets Swimming New Zealand carted them around the lake in rubber-dinghies without a lifejacket in sight. State Insurance found out and six months later State Insurance was gone. Their $1.0 million a year sponsorship was based on the contribution of Swimming New Zealand to water safety. The idea of elderly swimming officials without lifejackets, floating into the mouth of the Waikato River was not what State Insurance had in mind.

At the time Swimming New Zealand said this.

Swimming New Zealand always enjoyed a positive relationship with State Insurance and respects and appreciates the commitment State showed to our sport. They were always a pleasure to work with. The decision of State Insurance creates a new opportunity for the Swimming New Zealand community.

This week CNZ told Zoe George this.

“All sponsorships have a lifecycle and we thank APL for all they have done over the six years as a partner. We have known the contract was coming to an end for some time and are in the process of developing a new sponsorship strategy for 2022 onwards.

Many of you may be thinking that sponsorships come and go. That is the nature of commercial life. While I agree with that, not all principal sponsorships end because of the bad conduct of two of New Zealand’s major sports. Of course, there is linkage. E

Even the “death notices”, eight years apart, sound like they have been written by the same pen.

And so, if we really want to clean-up sport in New Zealand do not be distracted by what happens in swimming or cycling or canoe racing. Go to the source of the corruption, SNZ and HPSNZ. There you will find, too much money, too much power, too much centralisation. And far too little discipline and control. Power and money have corrupted and corrupted absolutely. That is where the cleanout should begin.

Preparing this post, I went to one of my University textbooks and looked up “bad-parenting”. Here is what it said:

1. They demand blind obedience. You wait and see what happens if a sport crosses HPSNZ or SNZ. No more money, that’s for sure.
2. They use intimidation to discipline. The money stick is always ready. The price of failure is counted in millions.
3. They are controlling. The imposition of centralisation, the use of a standard constitution and governance structure. The power of appointed officials over those who win elections. Of course, they are controlling.
4. They deny responsibility… whenever things go wrong. Have you ever heard SNZ or HPSNZ accept responsibility for Olivia Podmore’s mistreatment or Alan Thompson’s trial or my health? Of course not.

Common sense, bad parents, bad children. It is time Grant Robertson sorted it out. It is already too late.