Showcasing New Zealand Culture on the Global Stage – Nicki Nicol, NZ Olympic Committee

This transcript has been transcribed by Riverside.fm, no edits (please excuse any errors)

Sean Callanan (00:01.826)
Very happy to welcome Nikki Nicole. She's the Chief Executive Officer and Secretary General for the New Zealand Olympic Committee. Nikki, welcome to the podcast.

Nicki Nicol (00:10.842)
Thanks Sean, lovely to be here.

Sean Callanan (00:13.134)
Not a problem at all really appreciate you you coming on the on the pod We did connect at sport next and and I'm always looking for new and interesting people in the world of sports business to come on the podcast So it was good to finally lock in a lock in a time I always I always start the podcast by asking people how they got their start in the world of sports business What about yourself? How did you find your way into the world of sport?

Nicki Nicol (00:34.926)
Yeah, well, think like many people, it's a bit of luck and it's a little bit of good timing. So I had forged a commercial career working for multinationals for many years and it was time to really head back to New Zealand. We've been living in Australia for the last four years and from a family perspective, we just really wanted to be settled for high school. So we ended up in New Zealand in Wellington and using my commercial background, I sort of fell into New Zealand rugby. And so I'm…

came into New Zealand rugby as a CFO there five years and from there that gave me the opportunity to come into the Olympic world.

Sean Callanan (01:10.51)
I mean, I don't want to go too quickly over this, but falling into an organization like New Zealand Rugby, I mean, obviously you had an impressive corporate career. Was sport something you were looking at specifically? Were you looking at corporate? Was it just fortuitous or was sport something you were looking to get into?

Nicki Nicol (01:29.39)
Yeah, so I think particularly for me, sports has been a big part of my life. My husband, my children, very active in sport. so it's something that I've looked at. I've been involved in governance. I was on the Surf Life Saving New Zealand board. So I'd always sort of been, I suppose, sport adjacent, but from a career perspective, never found the right timing. then, know, fortuitously, I should say, timing was good. I'd had a gap year, so I'd sort of been sitting at home wondering what I was going to do. then, yeah, as timing.

fell for me. The role at New Zealand Rugby came up and that was sort really good alignment of my background but also then bringing the commercial lens into the sport environment.

Sean Callanan (02:05.89)
So at New Zealand Rugby, for those who know, it's a global brand and well known across the world, you're in multiple roles there. Again, was that something you were trying to broaden your skillset, of being chief financial officer, COO, chief transformation officer, I should say, in that time there? Was that something you were trying to expand your skillset and sort of understand the world of sport a little bit better?

Nicki Nicol (02:32.418)
a little bit reverse because my previous roles in international roles were all fairly broad and suppose commercial leadership so when the CFO role came up at Rugby it was a bit narrower and I think once I got in there was the opportunity to then know broaden the portfolio and take on some other areas of responsibility so again getting in getting involved and you know getting your hands dirty and then you know seeing the opportunities and that's what shaped those other roles.

Sean Callanan (03:01.166)
So five years at New Zealand rugby and in 2022 you came across to the New Zealand Olympic Committee. So the world rugby scene and the Olympic scene is vastly different. are some of the differences and the similarities in, I guess, moving to a new role in effectively a new sports landscape?

Nicki Nicol (03:21.966)
Yeah, so some of the differences are I think the breadth of sports. So rugby is our most professional and well-funded sport in the country. Its turnovers are close to 300 million, so it is sort far and away in New Zealand terms, you know, the number one sport from a commercial perspective and professional as in paying players and athletes. You know, I now look after, we support about 50 sports across.

New Zealand and going into games time maybe 20 or 30 sports that we can have participating in an Olympic Games or Commonwealth Games. And for us when you look at the diversity of those sports, we do have some really small sports, very limited funding or no funding, right through to rugby sevens which is sort of at the higher end. So I think for me that's the biggest difference is you're working in a much different environment with your key stakeholders, our member sports.

Sean Callanan (04:14.178)
And the thing is, as an Olympic committee, are managing and working with stakeholders. You're not running the sports underneath. You're working with New Zealand archery, New Zealand athletics, and New Zealand basketball and the like. How is that different in that you're lots of stakeholder management and you're trying to support them, but you're not actually running each effectively, each program.

Nicki Nicol (04:36.496)
Yeah, and if we think about the Olympic cycle every four years, we're building to a pinnacle event, whether it's summer or winter Olympics. And for us, it's a really…

It's a really integrated system in New Zealand. We don't have the resources of some of the bigger countries, so we've got to work really smartly. So we have ourselves, we have High Performance Sport New Zealand, which is a government funding agency, and we have the member sports. And so for us, we're all working collaboratively together to get to that day once every four years to help the athlete do the very best they can to make New Zealand proud, make them proud, and do the results that we all are looking for. So we have to work.

all across that supply chain. That's pretty fundamental and so for us, partnering with both high-performance sport and with our member sports is critical.

Sean Callanan (05:23.926)
And so for you, I mean, you've recently just come out of a strategy cycle and release your strategy for 2025 to 2028. What was that process like? Is that something that is kicked off post every Olympics or what was that process like? Can you take us sort of bit behind the curtain on that?

Nicki Nicol (05:42.904)
Yeah, so it was the first strategy refresh that I'd been through in the new role, the three years in, and in an Olympic world they tend to go in four-year cycles. This one was quite interesting because we sort of have a look further ahead, eight years, being Brisbane, now kind of the closest we'll get to our home games in a long time. So we're really conscious having an Olympics.

Well, Los Angeles on the one side of the Pacific and then Brisbane, the other side of the Pacific is a really important window for us as an Olympic committee and what it might mean. And so that was really the context that was really framing up what we wanted to achieve and what our goals were over the next quadrennial. And so the strategy was a really good process. We started with our members, we got feedback from our sports and then really with…

the board and my leadership team, spent a little bit of time just trying to really drill in about where do we really create value? Where is this sweet spot that we should be playing in as part of this integrated system? And then trying to make sure that we're preserving the real equity that is the essence of the Olympic team. And so that's sort where we landed with the pillars and the enablers that we came up with.

Sean Callanan (06:51.118)
And so the vision of that is to inspire pride and excellence in all New Zealanders, like that being the North Star. How do you then start getting into that execution phase on implementing that and always sort of looking back at that as the key vision?

Nicki Nicol (07:08.216)
Yeah, and it probably came down to three key areas for us. One was sort of leading teams to games, which is the essence of the organization. So we have Olympic and Commonwealth games. So slightly different. Not all countries have both in the same jurisdiction, but we do. And I think that's a function of our size and scale. So that's really first and foremost. And for us, that's supporting the athletes. That's telling the athletes stories. It's all about the planning and logistics and preparation.

The second key part for us is really how we connect and engage in it. And I think for us, that's both our sports, but it's also our community. And if we want to inspire pride and excellence in all New Zealanders, it's how we connect with our community across New Zealand. And of course, social media and our digital content is a big, important part of that plank. And the last one is our legacy. And so always how we can keep enhancing our legacy. And this was also quite a rich.

sort of theme at rugby as well as you can imagine but if you think of sort of in New Zealand the most iconic sporting moments over the last you know 50, 60 years a lot of them have involved olympic or commonwealth games and so for us how we keep those stories alive and how we keep inspiring generations through our education programs or some of those other things are really important as well.

Sean Callanan (08:22.904)
And another part that really came through in the strategy is, I guess, the connection of your strategy to New Zealand culture and the Maori framework in your decision-making process. know, is, I mean, and you've now been in two organizations that are really embedded in that. Was that something that you've, I guess, further embraced and learned more since you've returned back to New Zealand to work with two orgs that have that as a real key pillar?

Nicki Nicol (08:37.178)
Yeah.

Nicki Nicol (08:50.32)
Yeah.

think for Kiwis, when you go away, it's something that you really hold, you probably value more when you're away, when you can look back and just be really proud of our bicultural status that we have and the indigenous culture that sort of permeates through a particular lot of our sporting teams. And so for us, for the Olympic world, it's been about a 20 year journey, but probably in the last sort of two to three games, we've really invested in what we call a culture of Manake. And Manake is a word that talks about respect or respect.

respecting the opposition, respecting the competitions we're at, respecting each other. And so how we try and bring this culture of monarchy together is particularly at games time is there's probably a few rituals that we have. So the beautiful korowai, the cloaks that our flag bearers wear, there's a very formal process of handing over the flags.

sorry, the cloaks to the flag bearers. Every athlete gets, in the Olympics, gets a Māori stone, the green stone, Pōnāmu, that they are inducted into the team with. And so some of those rituals have helped us really kind of create a real sense of connection. Because if you think, when we, we only have a very short window at games time to bring the team together, there's only 20.

you know, say there's 23 sports I think we had in Paris. And so suddenly you're trying to bring 200 athletes together and make them feel like they're one team when they're used to having a gymnastics team or a athletics team or a hockey team and so forth. And so what we've found is these rituals really grounded in Te Ao Māori have helped really bring that culture together. And so we have a haka that's been gifted to us that is ours for the team and all the team learn it. And so as every athlete is welcomed, they're haka'd into the village and things like that, which I think is

Nicki Nicol (10:33.601)
for us something that we're really proud of and certainly from an engagement perspective from our fans is something that has resonated amazingly as well.

Sean Callanan (10:43.916)
And is it also something that I guess helps present New Zealand on the global stage? And that's what the Olympics gives you to give you that point of difference to tell those stories, to tell more about your culture and sort of let people lean in, especially obviously New Zealanders, but also internationally to have people learn a little bit more.

Nicki Nicol (11:05.591)
Yeah, and so I mean, think, you know, in this organization, we're passionate about sport, but we're also passionate about New Zealand. And I think just back to Paris, we took with us a kapa haka group, a Maori dance group. And they were involved in a lot of activities. We have a New Zealand house, which is a big area where people can come and celebrate and watch watch New Zealand athletes on New Zealand television feed. And as part of that, you know, there were lots of events and having this kapa haka group there.

to support us was fantastic. But what we also did in partnership with our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who supported the funding through their cultural diplomacy fund as well, and Tamata Timi, which is a big cultural festival here in New Zealand, we went out and did some cultural displays. And there's just some iconic photos that we have of the team under the Eiffel Tower doing a poi dance, or in the park de Ballette, just thousands of people.

seeing New Zealand culture there. so for us, if we can amplify the best of New Zealand as well as the best of our sporting talent, I think that's a real win for all of us.

Sean Callanan (12:09.64)
And like you said, you sort of came into the world of sport with that commercial lens and looking at things to do things like expanding, I guess, the, you know, the universe of sport, not just say, hey, we're talking about sport or, you know, this is a ball going in a hoop or, or, you know, an arrow hitting a board, like to be able to have a wider canvas, to be able to talk to your partners to say, this is why you should be a, you know, a partner and come along the journey with New Zealand Olympic Committee. that

Has that made that job easier because you've got a little bit more canvas to work with?

Nicki Nicol (12:41.316)
Definitely, and I think as you say, we're filling in that canvas and the richness of the stories that we're telling. I think back to just our social media, the engagement scores that we got were phenomenal. If you look at, let alone New Zealand, we were fourth in the total engagement across Meta and TikTok. again, and that's because we're telling these really rich cultural stories, we're really authentic stories and the team are working sort of behind the scenes to kind of get those unique.

moments that are shared back with other people and so we feel it's really resonating and for us it's now how we sort of build on that really authentically to also then help you know attract the sponsors and partners that come with us and you know that's a big part of our job as well.

Sean Callanan (13:26.042)
No, no, exactly. I mean, because the thing is, and I think one of the things we were discussing at Sport Next is all of the rules and regulations around the Olympics and sponsorship and all the things you can and can't do. And there's lots of things you can't do. So you do have to get creative on, you know, how you engage your partners both outside the, you know, the four years and then what, how they, how they can be a part of the, you know, the two weeks festivities or sorry, the four weeks festivities with the Olympics and the

Nicki Nicol (13:52.781)
Yep.

Sean Callanan (13:54.186)
and the Paralympics, do you think that's sort of part of, know, having those cultural moments, but then that longer form storytelling and getting your partners involved to sort of help you open up and sort of, I guess, get around some of those rules?

Nicki Nicol (14:11.16)
Yeah, you're right. The rights framework is quite tight and we appreciate the context of the IOC operate as well. But for us, what we're also trying to do is smooth out the skyscrapers. So it's not we're on every four years or every two years with winter and Commonwealth Games. It's how we tell a narrative all the way through. And so again, the relationship with the athletes and the athlete stories and particularly for a lot of them, as I say, these sports that aren't particularly well funded.

So anything we can do to help raise the profile of the athletes is a bit of a win-win. And so that's been a big focus for us.

Sean Callanan (14:42.51)
And then also you have to have the agility also to, know, with 50 sports under you and then 23 sports representing, you don't know who's going to do a PB or have an inspirational, you know, story or, you know, take the world stage by storm for something they're doing on or off the track. How do you sort of, how was that in Paris in planning those moments and, we're going to do these things like get a great shot in of the Eiffel Tower, but then also,

while that happened, how do we maximise that piece?

Nicki Nicol (15:15.224)
Yeah, look, credit to the comms and content team. mean, firstly, we want to tell, we have a selection criteria. So all the athletes that we are taking, we expect to be performing very competitively. So that's first and foremost for us. And then what we do is we have a commitment that we tell every athlete story. So we will make sure that across the team, we've got representation from a content perspective to be able to capture those moments. And there were many, mean, Paris for us was phenomenal. We finished 11th on the medal table.

which 20 medals, 10 of them gold, which is our best ever. I think we had eight gold medals back in 1984, so it's been a long time since we passed that score. And so for us, you know, there were lots of special moments, but as I say, when we look back and look at the either TikTok or Insta,

feeds and what really resonated. It wasn't just the medal moment, it was the stories that sort of hung with it. was Finn Butcher who won the canoe slalom, putting his gold medal around his father's neck. And just that moment, was, it was just a beautifully captured and you know, that got, you know, sporting moment of the year here at our recent Helberg Awards. It's those little things that just really resonated with people and again, our culture is a big part of those stories as well.

Sean Callanan (16:30.648)
So how do you, mean, when you're in sport, there is always a school board, there is always a medal tally, and you're always aspiring to, you know, trump that and get that higher. But what are some of the other success factors that you are looking at to go, you know, we're inspiring a nation, we're seeing more signups with some of the NSOs because of what happens at Olympics. What are the other keys to success for you?

Nicki Nicol (16:58.158)
Yeah, one of the first things that we measure is actually how effective we're our team. So the delivery of the games could be because,

We are entrusted to create the best high performance environment for those athletes. Once every four years, these athletes have been training eight years to get to this moment. And so our job is to make sure that we don't stuff it up really. So we've got to make sure that that is spot on. So that's the first measure that we really look at. And it's really important from both an athlete and the high performance directors of the different sports, giving us the feedback to make sure that that environment, whether it's the best medical support, the best psych support, the best nutrition, uniform, cultural.

All of that stuff has to be world class. And so that's kind of a big part of what we ourselves on and measure. From a sports system perspective, it's really around the sustainability. That's the big focus for us at the moment. And we know how tight it is. Our government, it's a really difficult environment. Everyone's trying to sort of pull in. And so we all are trying to work harder with the same or slightly less resource. And so I think that's the other big part for us is around how we can support each other to be the most sustainable we can.

And for us the Olympic rings has I suppose commercial value and so what we're trying to do is leverage that to be able to best support the sector as well because we can't get to the Games and not have the athletes there ready to go so we're all in it together.

Sean Callanan (18:19.086)
Absolutely. And then that becomes part of the, like you said, that that angle commercially to, to partners to say, we need you to support your community in, you know, in our world, that means supporting the sports and supporting the athletes. So you can get that win every four years, every two years, depending on, on which Olympics you're talking about is, and is that sort of that longer term goal that you are pitching to, to partners to get on why they should be part of the Olympic movement?

Nicki Nicol (18:48.846)
Yeah, so our two big focus areas are one, commercially. So just trying to build partnerships. And I think we've got this unique opportunity with Los Angeles and Brisbane to try and really get people involved. So that's kind of one side. And the other side for us is really around philanthropy. And that's quite a big part of our revenue profile.

And we want to move from cash coming in, which helps invest in getting the team to the games, to actually having an endowment fund that we've always got that sustainability. So again, that's a big focus over this quad and the next that we get to the end of Brisbane. And we've actually got something there for the future generations. I can pass it on to someone else.

Sean Callanan (19:28.962)
Exactly. mean, you are, you know, you are looking at looking at the future in 2028 and Brisbane. I mean, you're you're right. They're still pretty close. Like LA is just one flight. You're there. And when you're in Australia and New Zealand, you just get on that flight and you're there. those two next, you know, those two next summer Olympics, at least how are the plans coming along for that? And then, you know, that long term piece of, you know, Brisbane being, you know, effectively in your backyard and being close and being same and similar time zone.

Nicki Nicol (19:39.63)
Yeah.

Sean Callanan (19:58.658)
What sort of opportunities do those two next Olympics offer?

Nicki Nicol (20:01.776)
Yeah, and I think for us, and this is where it does play quite nicely with our partnership with government and New Zealand Inc. is, and again, bringing a commercial side to it as well, is those are both really important markets. Both North America and Australia are really important markets for us as a New Zealand entity first, but also as a sporting entity. And so for us trying to leverage

what that means. We're looking in Los Angeles to partner with Culver City, which is a city probably about 10 miles in from Venice Beach for those sort of just north of the airport, quite central, given how dispersed.

all the locations and venues will be in LA. And so for us, know, the New Zealand House has always been a really successful concept. had 20,000 people through the New Zealand House in Paris, which half of them were actually were non-New Zealanders. So I think that kind of shows that monarchy, that hospitality that we do put on. And for us, it's a free offering. And so we kind of want to be a bit more ambitious in LA and with a partnership with Culver City. They have a beautiful town plaza that we really want to take over and turn that into a way to showcase New Zealand.

and do some of the things we talked about with our kapa haka groups or partnering with their community. And for us, you know, those are some of the kind of legacy stuff that we're really excited about. Brisbane's a little bit further off. We haven't kind of got too far ahead of ourselves there, but we have seen the venues have been announced and some of the planning is getting underway there. But we have got one eye on that. And for us also, you know, what's the opportunity if we were to host the Commonwealth Games maybe in 34 is probably our aspiration. So, you know, that's a beautiful.

know, package coming together all around the Pacific over the next sort of, you know, next decade.

Sean Callanan (21:41.858)
Yeah, I mean, think the dispersed nature of LA will provide lots of opportunities for everyone to sort of claim their little space and sort of, because it won't be that central location that a lot of Olympics are, the fact that there will be a lot of traveling and moving about. It will provide some of those opportunities activation-wise and the like to showcase what you can do.

So what were some of the, you know, some of the sort of going back to Paris, like what were some of the key wins for you other than, you know, not to diminish the tremendous gold medal tally or some of the key, key wins from your point of view.

Nicki Nicol (22:26.512)
Yeah, well, I think we reflect on Paris being really successful on the field, but also off the field. And we've talked a lot about on the field, but you

But still a couple of ones I will call out, Dame Lisa Carrington winning her eighth gold medal, ninth medal overall was just phenomenal. Three gold medals in her canoe racing. Dame Lydia Koh, know, getting her bronze, silver and then getting the gold. A very special day. So there are a couple of big ones there. If we look at our medals, 74 % of our medals were won by women. So again, I think that shows a huge investment in us and trying to really lift the gender equity gap that we've had, you know,

going back and I think reflects a huge amount of work in the sector. If I think about it from an Olympic perspective off the field we were really successful with representation onto the IOC. Sarah Walker became a member in her own right and again these are

prestigious role. Sarah's got about 30 plus years now the right to participate there so it is a huge honor for Sarah and for us and Marcus Daniel was elected with Jess Fox as to the athlete as athlete representatives on the Athletes Commission so so that was good because it means we get to be part of shaping sport with a front row seat there and then the New Zealand House for us was just hugely successful as I 20,000 people through a very small

couple of courtyards at the back of the Champs-Élysées Marriott Hotel, but for us that's where friends and family can come and celebrate and spend time with athletes and team, with other Kiwis, with other people who want to support Kiwis, and for us showcasing that culture of monarchy with our guests is something that's really important.

Seancallanan (24:12.97)
And while the games are happening and you you're in Paris and you're activating New Zealand house is obviously, you know, everyone back home tuning in, cheering on. How do you sort of, how do you connect and stay connected with your home base, whether it be, you know, viewing parties, broadcast, how do you, you know, I guess connect the country. A lot of it is through the, you know, through the TV and through, through social, but is it.

ways to do it back home.

Nicki Nicol (24:44.014)
Yeah, so we've tried a number of different things and probably COVID was a Tokyo massive takeover and sort of New Zealand house in New Zealand. We did a number of commercial activations, commercial partners hosting breakfast and things like that. The time zone wasn't perfect for us. It was quite early in the morning for some of the finals and things like that, whereas Los Angeles will be quite different. So I think we will do much more in that at that time. We also do, you know, the staff do their own

We can't take the whole team unfortunately so staff have their own mini Olympics and events and then we've got quite a lot of through social but also newsletters to our engaged fans and things like that, sharing some of the behind the scenes stuff. Huge media representation so really great support both mainstream and more niche and social driven groups who are up there also getting content and sharing it back as well.

Sean Callanan (25:40.078)
I mean, there is a misconception outside the world of sport that when you're not playing, you've just got your feet up on the desk, there's not much happening. Not an Olympic year, you know, right now. What are the key things you try to tackle in a non-Olympic year?

Nicki Nicol (25:48.548)
No.

Nicki Nicol (25:54.392)
Yeah, well, because…

2026 is quite a busy one with Winter Olympics in February, Commonwealth Games in July, and then the Youth Olympics in Africa in October. And so the vernacular sort of seems to talk about a non-games year. And I think we've sort of said, actually, that doesn't exist. We're kind of just still running pretty fast. And so for us, it's setting up for the quad. So a lot of planning for those three games next year. And we're still obviously planning for Los Angeles. And then the big ones are really around sort of locking in revenue and building

kind of the commercial strategies that underpin how we're going to secure that revenue through the Quad. So yeah, those are kind of the big ones we're working on at the moment. It's also a chance for us to spend a bit of time on our people. So, you know, lots of personal development plans and those sorts of things, which is just good for us to reflect and just see where everyone's at and make sure that we are investing in our people because we ask a lot of them come games time.

Sean Callanan (26:49.134)
Absolutely. You run that marathon that's really a sprint in that time, but then realizing that there's other parts of the calendar that you want to develop. There's also, again, tackling that misconception with partners to think, we can only be engaged during these tournament periods, during these major events. And so it's not even in their thinking that, I should be thinking about the Olympics.

Nicki Nicol (27:12.601)
Yeah.

Sean Callanan (27:18.146)
Olympics now and doing the appropriate planning.

Nicki Nicol (27:21.872)
Yeah, and our digital channels are pretty critical for that. so, you know, there's a lot of content domestically. If you think of national championships and other events and things like that, we also run events to create content. So one year to go, we'll be having a big event for the Commonwealth Games. So that is a lot of getting ready as well. So we don't have that big spike. We were always sort of keeping a base level of engagement. So yeah, you're absolutely right.

Sean Callanan (27:47.542)
Absolutely. And like you said, there's athletes out there training right now for LA, for Brisbane, and you can start pulling some of those threads of those stories so they're not complete unknowns when they're on the world stage. A lot to look forward to with all of those games next year and then obviously 28 and onward. What excites you about the future for New Zealand Olympic Committee?

Nicki Nicol (28:04.098)
Absolutely.

Nicki Nicol (28:17.868)
I think for me it's just the pleasure and joy you get from seeing the athletes. They're just phenomenal people. I think they represent the very best of New Zealand and so anything we can do to support them on that journey is just…

Sean Callanan(29:12.654)
Absolutely. mean, on that, we sort of spoke about, I guess, expanding the canvas before, you know, culturally, a lot of what you do and what you're doing supporting is supporting the athlete on their way up the mountain, on their way to the pinnacle. But then, you know, post their Olympic success or post their Olympic journey, post their achievement, which it is, you're an Olympian, it's an achievement. How much do you work with, I guess, past Olympians and the alumni to sort of…

again, expand their canvas and have them be guests at New Zealand House, have them be part of the story. How important is that for you as well?

Sean Callanan (31:32.782)
But it's also like, you know, it's both been like enough to speak a lot of athletes that have transitioned out of being an athlete to their second career. And sometimes they don't realize the skills and the discipline that they had and learned as an athlete is just as applicable in the business world. it is good to one help them, you know, one realize that, but then also get the added benefit of keeping him in the sport and solving a problem.

Sounds like a terrific program.

Sean Callanan (32:11.79)
Well, Nicky, I really do appreciate you taking the time for the podcast. I want to get to the Sports Geek closing five. Do you remember the first sports event you ever attended?

Sean Callanan (32:51.455)
Yes, I remember that tournament quite well as well You would have been to a lot of different sports events and the and the food offerings that sports has changed over time Do you ever do you have a favorite food memory or a go-to food at a sports event?

Sean Callanan (33:10.518)
Yep. With Source, it is an easy go-to and it has been nominated often. So you're not alone there. Working in global sport, you never know when something's going to drop. What's the first app you open in the morning?

Sean Callanan (33:37.58)
No, no, that's fine. It's always, always…

Sean Callanan (33:44.342)
How's your, how's your Whirtle streak going? What's it, what's the current streak at?

Sean Callanan (33:51.01)
Well done. Well done. Is there someone that you follow that the, might be someone you follow on social media or an author or, or someone like that, that you follow that the podcasters should give a follow to and why.

Sean Callanan (34:34.122)
Absolutely, we'll put a link in the show notes. Lastly, and you can answer this personally, and you can also answer it from a New Zealand committee point of view, what social media platform is your MVP?

Sean Callanan (35:00.404)
Absolutely, absolutely. Well, Nicky, thank you very much for coming on the podcast. I always ask listeners to at least reach out, say thank you if they've listened. What is the best platform for them to reach out and say thank you to you on?

Sean Callanan (35:22.222)
No, not a problem. We'll put a link to your LinkedIn. Really appreciate you coming on the podcast. Hopefully we can connect in person like we did at Sport Next sometime soon. Thanks a lot.