We just scratch a four-year itch
As a country, New Zealand’s sense of identity is indelibly intertwined – rightly or wrongly – in our sporting heritage and success. Think not? Go back to 2007 when they nation went into a deep state of depression over THAT loss to France in the Rugby World Cup at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. A good percentage of Kiwis would be able to easily answer a Trivial Pursuits question on who the referee (Wayne Barnes) was. The failure of the All Blacks was taken far too personally and for an unhealthy length of time the mood of the country was all black.
Our significant achievers, innovators and pioneers – aside from perhaps music – are seldom given the due importance they deserve. Sport represents our Everest – our ability to show the rest of the world that we are more than just an insignificant inhabited dot at the end of the world.
And so to the Paralympics. The Rio Paralympics 2016 have again highlighted how much we love to bask in the afterglow of of sporting success which has come through the likes of Sophie Pascoe, Anna Grimaldi, Liam Malone and Mary Fisher.
The back-stories appeal to our sense of achievement – overcoming adversity and rising above the odds. It’s a feel-good distraction that’s highlighted by the fact their achievements are trending in sports coverage.
Do we really care or is it just another opportunity to boost the national psyche through reflected glory? History would suggest it’s the latter. News media coverage of Parasports (including Fairfax’s) is like a four-year itch that we feel obliged to scratch to discover if the marriage is really love or just an infatuation.
Few Kiwis would be able to name a single Paralympian aside from Pascoe and the Cupid of the 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games, Neroli Fairhall, who captured our hearts with a single arrow.
For all of their dedication, tenacity and athleticism, paraplegians and the events they are involved in are treated in the same way as minor sports participants – they only get attention when there is a gold, silver or bronze lining to their achievements.