Two weeks in the Tent at High Performance Sport New Zealand

The Steep Track and the Tourist Feeling

Last week I stepped into a new arena.

I walked into The Cambridge Velodrome, a huge towering stadium.

It’s hard to get your head around just how steep the track is.

The enclosed ceiling and tiered seating arc above the slanted wooden surface.

New Zealand’s largest Velodrome, and home to Cycling New Zealand.

It’s also a High Performance Sport New Zealand National Performance Centre.

Where HP athletes centre themselves for gym, rehab, and support services every week.

Walking in on my first day - I felt like a tourist.

I was introduced to them all:

Physios, S&C coaches, Sport psychologists, nutritionists, analysts, culture leads, selectors, and performance coaches.

Many of them buzzing with excitement as they were about to board flights to Glasgow for the Commonwealth Games.

These are people at the peak of their professions.

All working toward one goal: To inspire performance every day.

“Gidday, I Follow You on LinkedIn”

Two coaches I met and will work with closely, they knew who I was!

“Gidday, I follow you on LinkedIn” - gulp!

On both occasions, I was embarrassed. I shrugged it off.. even apologized!

But both corrected me.

“No, I connected with you” “I’ve enjoyed following your journey”

Being awkward, brave, and showing up in public.

Sharing my fears, failures, learnings, and wins in an open way.

It’s actually contributed to me getting into the building at HPSNZ.

A place I never would have dreamed I would end up.

But now one, where there are people who have an idea of my values.

What I believe. What I’m trying to achieve.

Increasing the Surface Area of Getting Lucky

I’m beginning to realize, there are more and more people like me.

Everything i’ve done in the last 5-Years since leaving my corporate career.

It’s been to increase my chances of getting lucky!

Meeting the right person, at the right time, in the right place.

Actively hunting and searching for chances to increase my surface area of luck.

Being known as someone with my hand up instead of out.

Keen to take on a challenge, keen to practice and develop my own self-leadership.

Precision, Benchmarks, and a Different Way of Moving

Being in an environment focused on high performance is strikingly different.

I’m already noticing how these professionals engage and carry themselves.

There is a preciseness and factual nature in the way they make decisions.

There are benchmarks, performance standards, clear strategy, and expectations.

It’s a building full of new potential mentors and interesting people.

Who have their own stories and journeys within sport.

From all over the country, and the globe to be based in this centre.

The swipe card on my car key is literally a key into a new arena.

An arena where purpose is simple:

To support and develop the athletes who inspire New Zealanders.

The Same Bubble as an International Tournament

The energy at the HPSNZ Performance Centre.

It’s the same feeling I get when I’m at an international hockey tournament.

That feeling of being at the centre of your sport, and the world is watching.

There is public interest, scrutiny, time feels compressed.

The feeling that everything outside the competition is temporarily irrelevant.

Inside a bubble where all that matters is your performance and the competition.

Inside this environment, at the Performance Centre - People want clarity.

I think I’m drawn to it because this is my definition of a high performance as a referee.

It’s always about clarity.

Locked In, and the New Measuring Stick

I’ve already had the privilege of meeting a Paralympian striving for the LA Olympics.

A young group of cyclists picked to ride team pursuit in Brisbane in 2032.

Their goals are set, the path is clear. They’re the definition of locked in.

It’s hard to compare my passion and sense of drive to these athletes.

But I want to explore it and learn how they’re able to push themselves.

At the end of the day, my version of high performance is as a referee.

Testing my ability to have elite accuracy and decision making under fatigue and pressure.

To match tempo and tactics of the best hockey players on the planet.

In this building, there’s no question. There’s a higher performance standard.

For these athletes, elite decision-making under fatigue and pressure is normal.

This is the new standard I get to compare and measure myself against