Greatest Kiwi Bloke Ever
Tagged in: Tall Blacks
Warning: file_exists() [function.file-exists]: open_basedir restriction in effect. File(/var/www/vhosts/basketball.org.nz/httpdocs/resources/uploads/2008/01/s3500082-edit.thumbnail.jpg) is not within the allowed path(s): (/home/bbnz/:/tmp:/usr/local/lib/php/) in /home/bbnz/domains/tallblacks.org.nz/public_html/wp-includes/post.php on line 3943
The late Sir Edmund Hillary was not just an inspiration to outdoor adventurers around the world. He also played a cameo role as a group of indoor pioneers – the Burger King Tall Blacks – left New Zealand for the 2002 FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis.
“If there was any doubt about how special this occasion was, it was erased when The Greatest Kiwi Bloke Ever walked into the hotel conference room on Monday night. As comedian Mike King said at the Tall Black fundraising dinner last month, this is a man who drove a Massey Ferguson tractor to the South Pole. You can’t get any more Kiwi than that.
Tab Baldwin reverted back to the little boy back in Florida, whose only knowledge of New Zealand was that TGKBE had conquered The World’s Biggest Mountain. Even the reigning Halberg Award Coach of the Year was star-struck around his childhood hero.
At first, the guys hung back, not really sure how to act around such celebrity. But soon TGKBE began telling tales of his adventures, comparing the world championships with Everest and expounding the virtues of teamwork.
Good advice, given the task at hand.
His best story, though, was about how he stood on top of TWBM, looked across at another as-yet-unconquered peak and began plotting his course up its slope. That was a wee reminder that the world tournament could be just the start for this team, with Olympic qualifying rolling around next year and the Melbourne Commonwealth Games embracing basketball in four years.
One by one, the guys introduced themselves and had their photos taken with TGKBE. This legendary figure of 83 years old has met captains and kings, yet still seemed chuffed to be around these young unknowns.”
Believe! The Inside Story of the 2002 Burger King Tall Blacks
Footnote: Four years later, Sir Ed paid his respects to the Tall Blacks as they prepared for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, attending a build-up game against India at the North Shore Events Centre. The visitors recognized the distinguished spectator, also a legend in their part of the world, and mobbed him for photos after the game.
