Personalities

New Zealand will be represented at the 2009 Venice Biennale by two eminent artists of differing mediums and methods but with a common interest – their birthplace and favourite Kiwi foods.

While Sir Edmund Hillary became one of the world’s most famous explorers, his mountaineering days began close to home on the slopes of Aoraki Mount Cook in New Zealand - and now visitors to the area can share the passage of his long and brilliant career.

New Zealand Māori chef Charles Royal has come a long way since his days as a field chef in the New Zealand Army when the bush was a means of survival.

Kiwi golfing legend Sir Bob Charles KNZM CBE – the first New Zealander to be admitted to the World Golf Hall of Fame – has been winning tournaments around the world for more than 50 years.

Inspired by watching his mother play, Danny Lee began his golfing career at the age of eight and 10 years later became the youngest person ever to win the US Amateur Golf Championship.

From Taranaki’s sheep-covered country golf courses to the manicured greens of international golfing, New Zealand golfer Michael Campbell made history in 2005 when he became the first Kiwi winner of the US Open.

Begun by European migrants, New Zealand's wine industry has grown rapidly, achieving great international success and a fine reputation in a relatively short time.

Corporal Bill Henry "Willie" Apiata was the first winner of the new Victoria Cross (VC) of New Zealand, which was instituted in 1999.

A consummate experimentalist, Ernest Rutherford (1871–1937) was responsible for a remarkable series of discoveries in the fields of radioactivity and nuclear physics.

New Zealand born yachting legend Sir Peter Blake is the only sailor to have taken part in the first five Whitbread Round the World races. He also led his country to two successive America’s Cup victories.