Kane Williamson is already a legend of New Zealand sport, as one of our greatest ever cricketers and someone whose work ethic and dedication are globally respected. His mindset and attitude are seen as huge strengths, and this episode of What I Know Now offers incredible perspective for listeners of all ages.

It revolves around the idea of balance, which might seem odd given Kane’s renowned dedication to his sport. He talks to School Sport NZ CEO Mike Summerell about:

• Being involved in a LOT of sport growing up - cricket, rugby, soccer, basketball, volleyball, hockey, athletics, and how he balanced them all
• Having a desire to get better and win, while also not being too affected by results
• Learning resilience through sport
• How team culture impacts enjoyment and results on and off the field
• Why focusing on results as an outcome isn’t ideal
• How he transitioned into specialising in cricket, and why he needed to find other hobbies when he did
• How he finds balance so he achieves in everything in his life, not just cricket
• Why he cringes when he heard people talk about early specialisation
• The best attributes of the coaches that stand out for him growing up

For most of her storied Silver Ferns career, Laura Langman was also juggling studying and working as an accountant. That she is recognised as one of our best-ever netballers shows how anyone can balance sport with a working career.

In this episode of What I Know Now, Laura talks to School Sport CEO Mike Summerell about how she did it, with loads of great lessons for young people today.

They touch on:

• The benefits of playing lots of different sports growing up
• Making her pro debut as a high school student, having only trialled to make up the numbers
• How her teachers supported her netball career
• Balancing studying for a degree with pro netball
• Becoming the master of her diary - meeting deadlines, dealing with pressure, and achieving her purpose
• Getting a job with Deloitte and juggling both
• How her sporting involvement and teamwork benefited her career
• Why sport at any level is important for young people
• Finding a balance between sport and other important aspects of your life - why variety is key
• How Pilates made a huge difference in her netball
• Achieving in what she was doing, not just participating in things
• How sport celebrates uniqueness
• The benefits of sport - resilience, problem-solving, and social awareness

This is an awesome chat that shows all the ways being involved in sport can benefit your career. That it’s lessons learned the hard way from a kiwi sporting great just carries more weight.

Tom Walsh is one of the most successful, and perhaps one of the most liked, Kiwi athletes of all time. He’s a world champion shotputter and Olympic medallist, as well as a down-to-earth character who hasn’t been afraid to do things his way.

This episode of What I Know Now puts a bunch of sporting issues under the microscope, such as specialisation and the popularity of mainstream sports. Tom is down to earth, bringing a valuable perspective on a lot of the big issues in school sport in New Zealand.

School Sport CEO Mike Summerell and Tom talk about:

• Why he gets frustrated hearing kids are being forced to specialise in sports from a young age
• How he favoured rugby and cricket over athletics for quite a long time
• How playing sport helped his social life when he moved from Timaru to Christchurch
• Being tempted to play a more mainstream sport, and why he ended up going with athletics
• Why he thinks we tie too much importance to rugby
• How sport has grown his self-awareness and ability to check himself sometimes
• The perspective and learning and value he’s gained from losing

This is a great all-round episode that touches on the many different values of sport, and how to get the most benefit from it.

Louisa Wall is a rare double international, who first played for the Silver Ferns at just 17 years old. She became a Black Fern six years later, winning a World Cup before launching a successful political career.

She’s now New Zealand’s Ambassador for Gender Equality in the Pacific, which includes using sport as a vehicle for equity and equality.

Louisa is in a great place to speak about equality within sports in areas such as culture, privilege, gender, and sexual orientation. In this episode of What I Know Now, she speaks with School Sport NZ CEO Mike Summerell about:

• How having a progressive father paved the way for her to enjoy sport
• Looking back on the significance of her childhood sport
• Being banned from playing rugby as a 5-year-old
• The importance of playing a range of sports, including soccer, karate, tennis, and more
• The hierarchy that exists between sports and how it influences opportunities for kids
• What she learned from doing all her homework at intervals or before school so she had time to play sport
• How people targeted some teams she played in for the number of gay players
• The difference today in how people are accepted within sport
• The significance of anticipating cultural diversity in sport
• How sport allows kids in poverty to talk about their issues
• How sport helps to build strong, resilient people
• How to involve young people in sport
• The role sport can play in making an equitable society

This is an engaging, in-depth conversation that showcases how sport creates a level playing field for all. It has great insight for parents, coaches, and administrators looking to make sports even more accessible so anyone can benefit from it.

Brad Weber is an All Black and a Super Rugby champion who’s become a vocal supporter of the rainbow community. From speaking out against Israel Folau to working in schools, he’s helping to pave the way for inclusivity within sports.

This episode of What I Know Now looks at how far rugby has come in being a place where people can be accepted for who they are. Brad acknowledges it’s still got some way to go, but can see the way forward.

School Sport CEO Mike Summerell and Brad talk about:

• Why he doesn’t think he would have been an All Black if he didn’t play different sports at school
• The resilience he got from going through club rugby rather than being fast-tracked
• How the social side of rugby kept him in the sport, even though he didn’t get a professional contract from school
• How his high school rugby coaches kept players engaged
• Why he’s so passionate about being an advocate for the gay community
• How sport has become more inclusive
• Being labelled by someone as the kind of person they’d hide their sexuality from
• The significance of casual language and how hurtful it can be to people
• How feeling like he could be himself set up his success at the Chiefs
• The role sport can play in helping young people to develop in a personal and social sense
• Being impressed by the inclusivity he sees when he goes to schools now
• His advice for dealing with friends when they say things that aren’t acceptable

Brad’s leadership and experience make him a powerful advocate in this space. This conversation highlights the impact of small things in allowing people to be themselves and shows how sport has a huge role in helping people to develop their own way.

Amelia Kerr is on track to be one of New Zealand’s best-ever White Ferns, but the lessons she’s learned in juggling sport and her studies are relevant for any young sportsperson.

Since she was first picked to play for her country on her 16th birthday, Amelia has balanced sport with her education and her social life. This episode of What I Know Now reflects on how she’s not only juggled her commitments, but how doing it has enabled her to succeed in different aspects.

School Sport CEO Mike Summerell and Amelia talk about:

• How she makes time for education, sport, friends, and family
• What her early days of playing sports looked like
• How she deals with being so busy, and
• The benefits of having things outside of cricket
• Why it’s important to be involved in sport
• The best thing she’s got from her sporting involvement
• Advice for parents on how to support their kids playing sport
• How the lessons she’s learned from sport relate to other parts of her life
• Sport and mental health, and what she’s learned through her own journey

This is a really relevant conversation for those involved with sport at any level, about how it flows through to benefit other aspects of life.

This might be the most impassioned backing of sport you’ll ever hear from a parent. Toni Street sees firsthand the benefits of sport in her kids, as a coach and a big advocate for getting them involved in anything and everything.

An impressive sportswoman herself growing up, Toni now helps her kids (and their friends) to benefit in a range of ways. It’s an excellent listen for parents in particular, on how sport can permeate through to every aspect of kids’ lives.

In this episode of What I Know Now, Toni and School Sport NZ CEO Mike Summerell talk about:

• Playing sports from 3 years old
• The benefits of playing a range of sports and the pressure to specialise
• Why it’s important to mix in other things as well as playing sport
• The critical role her family played in the value she got from playing sport
• How her best school memories all revolve around sport
• Coaching her kids’ teams, and seeing the benefits for young people from a different perspective
• How lessons learned in sport have benefitted her work life
• Why she believes playing sports should be compulsory growing up
• How to deal with the admin of getting kids to all the sports they’re involved in
• Why she loves being a coach, and how it helps to build relationships with her kids and their friends
• Why she’s so invested in her kids’ sport, and the payoff she sees

Sport isn’t everything, but it does impact a lot of things. In this School Sport NZ podcast, hosted by CEO Mike Summerell we look at how the benefits of sport flow through to everyday life.

It’s designed for people who want to be involved in sport but have other priorities too. Mike talks to a range of people with lived experience about how sport impacts relationships, careers, identities and more, and how they balanced sport with other important parts of their lives.

Hear relevant and useful experience from some of the best-known names within New Zealand sport and beyond, discovering all the ways sport has benefited their lives on and off the field...but mostly off.