2016 Road to Rio

          Athletes from around the world united (on 5-21 August) at the 28th Summer Olympic Games held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They competed in 42 different sports, contested at 32 competition venues, spread across four regions of Rio. Since the inception of the first Olympic Games in 1896, our Kiwi athletes have inspired generations, winning a total of 103 medals - 43 gold, 19 silver and 41 bronze.
          ‘Be the Inspiration’ is the theme of New Zealand’s 2016 Olympic Games campaign. It tells the story of how we as a nation support and inspire our athletes as they prepare to pull on the iconic black singlet - which has been worn with pride by generations before them - and in so doing, inspire us.

         The Rio Olympic stamp issue consists of ten $1 stamps - representing the ten events that New Zealand has previously won gold medals in athletics, boxing, canoeing, swimming, equestrian, field hockey, triathlon, rowing, cycling and sailing. Featuring elements of the New Zealand Olympic Committee’s (NZOC's) ‘Be the Inspiration’ campaign, the photographs on the stamps reflect the New Zealand landscape as the athletes' training ground for future success.

The Stamps.


                     
$1.00 - Road to Rio - Athletics.                                                 $1.00 - Road to Rio - Boxing.

                     
$1.00 - Road to Rio - Canoeing.                                             $1.00 - Road to Rio - Swimming.

                     
$1.00 - Road to Rio - Equestrian.                                         $1.00 - Road to Rio - Field Hockey.

                     
$1.00 - Road to Rio - Triathlon.                                              $1.00 - Road to Rio - Rowing.

                     
$1.00 - Road to Rio - Cycling.                                               $1.00 - Road to Rio - Sailing.


The First Day Covers.
 The issue featured two First Day Covers with five stamps on each.

          Rio Olympic games, this special presentation pack has been written by New Zealand’s golden girl and gold medal winner, Barbara Kendall. Inside is the sheetlet of ten stamps and the set of two first day covers. The presentation pack also contains a pocket designed to house some very special stamp collectables to be issued in August. As New Zealand won medals, New Zealand Post printed special stamps featuring images of the medal winners. As they were collected they would be housed in this presentation pack to make it the ultimate Rio 2016 collectable!

Rio 2016 Medalist Stamps.

New Zealand's best results from an Olympic Games.
2016 total of 18 medals - 4 gold, 9 silver and 5 bronze.

As the Games progressed and New Zealanders won medals, NZ Post issued another stamp celebrating that medalist. The goal was to get these stamps issued as soon as possible after the medal presentation ceremony so there was no time to include First Day Covers. Between the 8th August, 2016 and 20th August, 2016 there would be 18 new stamps issued bringing the Road to Rio stamp issue up to an impressive collection of 28 stamps. 


2016 Road to Rio Medalist Sheet.
The medalist stamps were first issued in sheets of six but later one of each of the 18 stamps
was put together into the sheet seen above.


Natalie Rooney - Silver.
          The New Zealand Shooting Federation nominated her for the country's sole quota spot in sports shooting at the 2012 Summer Olympics, but Ryan Taylor appealed the decision to the New Zealand Sports Tribunal and was sent instead. Natalie Rooney competed in the women's trap event at the 2016 Summer Olympics and won the silver medal, with gold going to Australia's Catherine Skinner. She was only the second New Zealand sports shooter to win an Olympic medal, the first being Ian Ballinger who won bronze in the small-bore rifle at the 1968 Summer Olympics.

$1.00 - Natalie Rooney.
Shooting:- Trap - Women.
Each miniature sheet except this, the first one, would include the words "Celebrating our Medalists" in the bottom left-hand corner.


Women's Rugby Sevens - Silver.
         The New Zealand women's national rugby sevens team is New Zealand's representative team in rugby sevens for women. They are the reigning women's Rugby World Cup Sevens champions, having won the most recent edition in 2013, and also have been a "core team" that participates in all rounds of the IRB Women's Sevens World Series since that competition's inception in 2012–13.
         The women's rugby sevens tournament at the 2016 Summer Olympics was held in Brazil, hosted at the Deodoro Stadium, a temporary outdoor stadium constructed as part of the Deodoro Modern Pentathlon Park in Rio de Janeiro. The tournament was held from 6 August to 8 August 2016, starting with group matches before finishing with the medal ceremony on 8 August. Australia beat New Zealand 24–17 in the final.


$1.00 - Rugby Sevens - Women. 
The girls not in the order shown are. (Head coach: Sean Horan.)
Forwards ;- 1 Ruby Tui; 2 Shakira Baker; 3 Terina Te Tamaki; 4 Niall Williams; 5 Sarah Goss (captain); 9 Huriana Manuel.
Backs;- 6 Gayle Broughton; 7 Tyla Nathan-Wong; 8 Kelly Brazier; 10 Theresa Fitzpatrick; 11 Portia Woodman; 12 Kayla McAlister.

Luuka Jones - Silver.
          She started competing in 2003 at age 14. In preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympics, she moved to England to train with the British team. She was the first female canoe slalom paddler to represent New Zealand at the 2008 Olympic Games; she competed in the K-1 event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics where she finished last in 21st position, thus being eliminated in the heats. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, she qualified for the semifinals of the K-1 event where she finished in 14th place. At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, she won a silver medal in the K-1 event.

$1.00 - Luuka Jones.
Canoe - Slalom:- K-1 - Women.

Eric Murray and Hamish Bond - Gold.
        Eric Gordon Murray MNZM (born 6 May 1982) is a New Zealand rower and gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympic Games, as well as at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. He won four consecutive World Rowing Championship gold medals and set two world best times.
        Hamish Byron Bond MNZM (born 13 February 1986) is a New Zealand rower and Olympic gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympic Games and at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. He has won six consecutive World Rowing Championships gold medals and has set two world best times.


$1.00 - Eric Murray & Hamish Bond.
Rowing:- Pair - Men.

Cycling Track Team Sprint - Silver.
         Ethan Mitchell (born 19 February 1991) is a New Zealand track cyclist. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the men's team sprint for the national team.
         Sam Webster (born 16 July 1991) is a New Zealand track cyclist. He was the 2009 sprint, keirin and team sprint World Champion at the Junior World Championships and New Zealand national track cycling champion. He won gold medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in the individual sprint and the team sprint.
         Edward James "Eddie" Dawkins (born 11 August 1989) is a New Zealand track racing cyclist. At the 2010 Commonwealth Games, he won the silver medal in the men's sprint and the bronze medal in the men's 1-kilometre time trial. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, he won alongside Sam Webster and Ethan Mitchell a silver medal in the team sprint but did not go beyond the round 1 repechage in the individual sprint.
$1.00  - Ethan Mitchell; Sam Webster; Eddie Dawkins.
Cycling - Track: Team Sprint - Men.

Genevieve Behrent and Rebecca Scown - Silver.

         Genevieve Behrent was born in Oamaru in 1990. She received her schooling at Southland Girls' High School in Invercargill. Behrent had planned to start her tertiary education at the University of Otago in 2010 when she received her call to the New Zealand rowing squad. She moved to Cambridge to be at the New Zealand training centre at Lake Karapiro and studied at the University of Waikato instead. She won a silver medal at the 2015 World Rowing Championships with the women's eight, qualifying the boat for the 2016 Olympics. She also competed in the coxless pair in Rio and with Rebecca Scown won silver, beaten by the Heather Stanning and Helen Glover of Great Britain. With the women's eight, she came fourth at the Rio Olympics.

         Rebecca Scown (born 10 August 1983) is a professional rower from New Zealand. Together with Juliette Haigh, she won the bronze medal in the women's coxless pair at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Previously they had won gold in the women's pair at the World Rowing Cup regatta in Lucerne, 2010 and at the 2010 World Rowing Championships at Lake Karapiro and at the 2011 World Rowing Championships in Bled. She won a silver medal at the 2015 World Rowing Championships with the women's eight, qualifying the boat for the 2016 Olympics. She also competed in the coxless pair in Rio and with Genevieve Behrent won silver, beaten by the Heather Stanning and Helen Glover of Great Britain.

$1.00 - Genevieve Behrent and Rebecca Scown.
Rowing: Pair - Women.


Valerie Adams - Silver.
        Valerie Kasanita Adams (formerly known as Valerie Vili), ONZM (born 6 October 1984) is a New Zealand shot putter. She is a four-time World champion, three-time World Indoor champion, two-time Olympic and three-time Commonwealth champion. She currently holds the New Zealand, Oceanian, Commonwealth and equal World Championship records with a personal best throw of 21.24 metres.
        Adams won a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro with a distance of 20.42 m behind US athlete Michelle Carter, Adams first came to prominence when winning the World Youth Championships in 2001, with a throw of 16.87 m. She followed this up in 2002 by becoming World Junior champion, throwing 17.73 m, and had her first taste of senior success winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games with 17.45 m. She has then gone on with an impressive career winning a total of 25 medals.
$1.00 Valerie Adams.
Athletics: Shot Put - Women.


Mahe Drysdale - Gold.
          Alexander Mahé Owens Drysdale, MNZM (born 19 November 1978) is a New Zealand rower. Drysdale is the current Olympic champion and five-time World champion in the single sculls. The name Mahé comes from the largest island in the Seychelles.Drysdale attended Tauranga Boys' College in Tauranga, New Zealand, then the University of Auckland. He began rowing at university at the age of 18. He gave up rowing to concentrate on his studies but began rowing again after watching fellow New Zealander Rob Waddell win gold at the 2000 Olympic Games.
          At the 2012 Summer Olympics Drysdale won the gold medal in the men's single sculls, despite throwing up the morning of race day due to nervousness. He has since been dethroned and had to settle for silver in the world championships leading up to the 2016 Olympics, each time bested by the Czech Ondřej Synek, who won the WC in 2010, 2013, 2014 and 2015.
At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Drysdale successfully defended his Olympic men's single sculls title, taking the gold medal over Croatia's Damir Martin. The race was decided by a photo finish, with Drysdale edging out Martin by half a bow ball.



$1.00 - Mahe Drysdale.
Rowing:- Single Scull - Men.

Lisa Carrington - Gold.
         Lisa Carrington, MNZM (born 23 June 1989) is a New Zealand flatwater canoer. She won gold in the Women's K-1 200 metres at the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Olympics, as well as gold in the same event at the 2011 Canoe Sprint World Championships.

         At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, she defended her gold medal in the K-1 200 metres event and won a bronze medal in the K-1 500 metres event. Carrington was the flag bearer at the 2016 closing ceremony.



$1.00 - Lisa Carrington.
Canoe Sprint:K-1 - 200m - Women.


Sam Meech - Bronze.
        Meech was born in Portsmouth, England, in 1991. The sailor Molly Meech is his younger sister; almost exactly two years his junior. When he was three and a half years old, their parents gave up their house and the family lived on a boat for the next decade; the siblings attribute their affinity to water to this period of their lives. He received his secondary education at Tauranga Boys' College, where fellow Olympic sailors Jason Saunders (born 1990) and Peter Burling (born 1991) were his contemporaries.
         Close friends Meech and Andy Maloney had an intense battle to win New Zealand's selection for the one quota spot for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Meech won a bronze medal at the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup sailing regatta in Miami (USA) in January, and a silver medal at a later regatta in Hyères (France) in April; these results won him the selection over Maloney. Meech and Josh Junior made up the last two Olympic nominees of the New Zealand sailing team in May 2016. Meech won a bronze medal in the Laser class; the first time that a New Zealand competitor has won an Olympic medal in this class. His sister, Molly Meech, also competed for New Zealand at the 2016 Olympics in the 49erFX class alongside Alex Maloney, the sister of Andy Maloney.

$1.00 - Sam Meech.
Sailing: Laser - Men.



Lisa Carrington - Bronze.
         Born in Tauranga, Carrington was raised in Ohope Beach, a satellite town of Whakatane in the eastern Bay of Plenty, and is of Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki and Ngāti Porou descent. She attended Whakatane High School and Massey University in Albany. She is coached by Gordon Walker.
         At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, she defended her gold medal in the K-1 200 metres event and won a bronze medal in the K-1 500 metres event. Carrington was the flag bearer at the 2016 closing ceremony.

$1.00 - Lisa Carrington.
Canoe Sprint: K-1 500m - Women.


Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie - Silver.
         Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie completed together sailing in the 470 dinghy class to take the silver medal for New Zealand. Both girls have long careers in sailing, both being made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for their services to sailing.
         Joanna (Jo) Ayela Aleh, MNZM (born 15 May 1986) is a New Zealand sailor. She is a national champion, a former world champion, and an Olympic gold medallist. Aleh competes in the two-woman 470 dinghy class, a double-handed monohull planing dinghy with a centreboard, Bermuda rig, centre sheeting and length overall of 4.70 metres.

          Olivia Elizabeth (Polly) Powrie MNZM (born 9 December 1987) is a New Zealand sailor. She holds Olympic and world championship titles in the 470 class and is a former 420 world champion.
          Powrie and her sailing partner Jo Aleh won the gold medal in the 470 dinghy class at the 2012 Summer Olympics. In August 2013, exactly a year after winning their Olympic gold medal, Aleh and Powrie won the world title at the 2013 470 World Championships in La Rochelle, France.

$1.00 - Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie.
Sailing: 470 - Woman.



Peter Burling and Blair Tuke - Gold.
        Peter Burling (born 1 January 1991) is a New Zealand sailor who won the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics as helm in the 49er class alongside Blair Tuke.
         Burling with Blair Tuke was the Olympic flag bearer for New Zealand at the 2016 Olympics. They are just the 4th New Zealand flagbearer to win a gold medal at the same Olympics.
At age 25, Burling is the youngest ever 49er Olympic gold medal skipper. Burling and Tuke won the 2016 Olympics with a huge 43 point margin - the most dominant win of any of the sailing classes. They finished ahead of the second placed (Australian) boat in 11 of the 13 races, being behind by just 3 points in race 3 and 1 point in race 10.


        Blair Tuke (born 25 July 1989) is a New Zealand sailor who won the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics as helm in the 49er class alongside Peter Burling.
        Tuke with Burling was co-captain of the New Zealand team at the 2016 Olympics. They are just the 4th New Zealand flagbearer to win a gold medal at the same Olympics.
Burling and Tuke won the 2016 Olympics with a huge 43 point margin - the most dominant win of any of the sailing classes. They finished ahead of the second placed (Australian) boat in 11 of the 13 races, being behind by just 3 points in race 3 and 1 point in race 10.



$1.00 - Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.
Sailing: 49er - Men.



Molly Meech and Alex Maloney - Silver.
        Molly Meech (born 31 March 1993) is a New Zealand sailor.
        Meech won the 2013 49er FX World Championship and a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics alongside Alex Maloney. During the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup, Meech and Maloney competed in the women's 49erFX competitions, winning in Miami and coming second in Weymouth. They again won in Miami to start the 2016 season. Her brother, Sam also competed for New Zealand at the 2016 Olympics.

         Alexandra "Alex" Maloney (born 19 March 1992) is a New Zealand sailor.
         Maloney is the sister of sailor Andrew Maloney. In 2007 in Cagliari, Italy she won a World Championship medal in the Optimist class. Maloney won the 2013 49er FX World Championship and a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics alongside Molly Meech. During the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup, Meech and Maloney competed in the women's 49erFX competitions, winning in Miami and coming second in Weymouth. They again won in Miami to start the 2016 season.

$1.00 - Molly Meech and Alex Maloney.
Sailing: 49er FX - Women.


Tomas Walsh - Bronze.
         Tomas "Tom" Walsh (born 1 March 1992) is a New Zealand athlete who competes mainly in the shot put. He is the current national record holder both outdoors and indoors for the event. His personal best of 22.00 m (72 ft 2 in), set at a Diamond League meet in Paris, 27 August 2016, is also the Oceanian record.
         Walsh was the bronze medalist at the 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships, the silver medalist at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, 4th at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics, winner of the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships, and the bronze medalist at the 2016 Olympic Games.
$1.00 - Tom Walsh.
Athletics: Shot Put - Men.



Eliza McCartney - Bronze.
        Eliza McCartney (born 11 December 1996) is a New Zealand track and field athlete who competes in the pole vault. She is the current outdoor world junior record holder at 4.64 m (15 ft 2 in) and New Zealand national record holder with 4.80 m (15 ft 8 in). She was a silver medallist at the Summer Universiade in 2015. BMX rider Sarah Walker, an Olympic silver medallist, approached McCartney at the Halberg awards ceremony on 18 February 2016 and has been mentoring her since. Competing in senior competitions since March 2016, she won the bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

$1.00 - Eliza McCartney.
Athletics: Pole Vault - Women.



Lydia Ko - Silver.
        Lydia Ko (born 24 April 1997) is a Korean-born New Zealand professional golfer who became the No. 1 ranked woman professional golfer on 2 February 2015 at 17 years 9 months 8 days of age, making her the youngest player of either sex to be ranked No. 1 in professional golf. On winning The Evian Championship in France on the 13 September 2015, she became the youngest woman, at age 18 years, 4 months and 20 days, to win a major championship. Her closing round of 63 was a record lowest final round in the history of women's golf majors. On 3 April 2016, she won the ANA Inspiration, where she also became the youngest player to win two women's major championships. At the Rio Olympics in August 2016, Ko won the silver medal for women's golf. 
         Since turning professional in 2014, Ko has career winnings of $7.2 million as of August 2016. In 2016, Ko was named Young New Zealander of the Year in the annual New Zealander of the Year Awards.

$1.00 - Lydia Ko.
Golf: Individual - Women.


Nick Willis - Bronze.
         Nicholas Ian Willis MNZM (born 25 April 1983) is a New Zealand middle distance runner and the country's only two-time Olympic medalist in the 1500 metres. He won the silver medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, and bronze at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. His other achievements over the same distance include the national and Oceania record (3:29.66), and medals from three consecutive Commonwealth Games (gold in 2006, bronze in 2010 and 2014).

$1.00 - Nick Willis.
Atheletics: 1500m - Men.

Technical information

Date of issue:
6 July 2016
Number of stamps:
Ten gummed stamps
Denominations:
$1.00 x ten
Stamps and first day covers designed by:
Jonathan Gray, New Zealand Post, Wellington, New Zealand.
Printer and process:
Southern Colour Print by offset lithography
Number of colours:
Four process colours
Stamp size and format:
42mm x 30.27mm (horizontal parallelogram)
Paper type:
104gsm red phosphor gummed stamp paper
Perforation gauge:
14 x 14.29
Stamps per sheet:
20
Period of sale:
Unless stocks are exhausted earlier, these stamps will remain on sale until 5 July 2017.
First-day covers will remain on sale until 3 September 2016.
Much of the information concerning the various medal winners came from From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia.

Some Information or images for this post came from.