Extra Time

In Extra Time this week - there's a dire warning that if the Tokyo Olympics go ahead people will die. A top epidemiologist is urging the International Olympic Committee it's not too late to call the Games off while we hear from Olympic silver medallist Sarah Walker on why the Games must go ahead. And can the Chiefs topple the Crusaders in the Super Rugby Aotearoa final? Join Stephen Hewson on RNZ's Extra Time - in association with Stuff and LockerRoom

In Extra Time this week - New Zealand Rugby's provinces may have given the green light to the Silver Lake proposal to buy into the game here....but a deal remains a long way off due to the stand off with the Players Association. On the field ...women's rugby moves to another level this weekend with the first women's Super Rugby match between the Blues and Chiefs but how far off is a fully fledged women's competition? And we talk to Joseph Parker ahead ahead of what shapes as a make-or-break fight for his professional career.

In Extra Time this week with Stephen Hewson... D-day looms for New Zealand Rugby and their deal with US tech giant Silver Lake - will it be the golden goose the sport has been hunting? Has the balance of power shifted in the ANZ netball premiership after a topsy-turvey opening round? We head to Bermuda to talk to America's Cup winner Peter Burling as he heads back out on the water for the opening race in the Sail GP series. And Gymnastics coaches are feeling battered and bruised in the wake of the review into the sport.

Is 2021 the year the Mainland Tactix finally get to lift netball’s ANZ Premiership trophy? This week on RNZ’s Extra Time, Bridget Tunnicliffe puts the question to LockerRoom's Suzanne McFadden, Stuff's Brendan Egan, and former Silver Fern Katrina Rore. We discuss whether off-season signings at the Northern Stars have put them in with a shot and how will the defending champion Pulse go after a number of changes to the side. Also, what impact will Australian Diamonds shooter Caitlin Bassett have at the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic? Later we look at the long-awaited inclusion of Pacific Island teams in Super Rugby and we hear from a leading psychologist about New Zealand's top athletes seeking psychological support in record numbers.

Are sports journalists in New Zealand too worried about staying onside with high-profile sports people? This week on RNZs Extra Time, Bridget Tunnicliffe poses the question to Stuff sports journalist Paul Cully, sports commentator Hamish Bidwell and RNZ sports reporter Joe Porter. We discuss the relationship between the media and well known sportspeople in New Zealand in light of a Stuff article that heard from the neighbours of one-test All Black Josh Ioane. Residents said the Dunedin property of Ioane had turned into a notorious "party house" where noisy, alcohol-fuelled gatherings frequently happened at weekends. The story came after the news that Ioane and five other players were stood down by the Highlanders after they went drinking following their round five loss to the Hurricanes. But some people didn't like the story including Hurricanes captain Ardie Savea. How should sports journalists approach reporting when it emerges that elite athletes have been behaving badly? Also, this week we hear from Australian cricket great Joanne Broadbent, who now coaches the Northern Districts, about the gulf between Australia and New Zealand in the women's game.

New Zealand Rugby and the players association are at loggerheads over the pending agreement with US investment firm Silver Lake. NZ Rugby says the potential $465 million deal is transformational while the players are concerned about potential cultural misappropriation.

High Performance Sport New Zealand have a new strategy, which focuses less on winning and more on athlete welfare. That's in response to several national sporting organisations being accused of mistreating athletes. Allegations of bullying, fat shaming and abuse forced several organisations to undergo both internal and external reviews of their protocols and policies around athlete wellbeing and high performance. Join RNZ's Joe Porter on Extra Time as we speak to High Performance Sport NZ's chief executive Michael Scott, the Athletes Federation's Roger Mortimer and Waikato club and New Zealand youth rowing coach Hannah Starnes, to discuss the shift in strategy. Will it work? How will athlete welfare be monitored? Will it affect performance? We also hear about the pressures athletes face from a high profile sportswoman who retired from top flight sport last week and the government is being urged to make Covid-19 vaccination compulsory for all NZ athletes going to this year's Tokyo Olympics.

Well the America's Cup is finally done and dusted and Team New Zealand and Te Rehutai have successfully defended the Auld Mug. So just why were Team New Zealand were so good - and where to now for the event? Join RNZ sports reporter Clay Wilson on Extra Time as he's joined by Stuff's America's Cup reporter Todd Niall, LockerRoom's Suzanne McFadden and sailing journalist Sarah Ell to dissect all the big talking points. Plus we catch up teenage snow sports star Nico Porteous, who tells us about a busy six weeks in which he's won X-Games gold, broken his foot skateboarding, and comeback to be crowned a world champion.

They've been there before and they know what to expect, but how will the Warriors cope with another NRL season based in Australia. Many players struggled without their families in 2020, it cost coach Stephen Kearney his job and they finished tenth. New coach Nathan Brown has bolstered his squad but the club's coffers certainly won't be bolstered by another year with no home games. Join Barry Guy on Extra Time as he and Hamish Bidwell are joined by former Warriors coach Frank Endacott to discuss the clubs prospects. Former cricket international Peter McGlashan also has his thoughts on the Blacks Caps in 2021, their pending World Test Championship Final and the desire to be among those to be vaccinated first. Extra Time is brought to you by RNZ, Stuff and LockerRoom.

In Extra Time this week - Bridget Tunnicliffe asks at what cost has the postponement of the women's Rugby World Cup come to the sport domestically and internationally? Can the Silver Ferns end a nine year drought without netball's Constellation Cup? And we preview Israel Adesanya's bid to join an exclusive UFC club in Las Vegas this weekend.

The Black Caps have drawn first blood in their T20 series against Australia, but does the five-match contest mean anything for New Zealand fans or for the Black Caps chances at this year's World Cup? In contrast the White Ferns have a battle on their hands to fight their way back into their one-day series against England after a heavy defeat in the opening game, can the New Zealand women compete with the World Champions or is the gap to the likes of England and Australia growing bigger? Super Rugby Aotearoa kicks off this weekend, can anyone stop the Crusaders from marching to a fifth straight title? And Joseph Parker gets back in the boxing ring with Junior Fa, what implications would a win or loss have for both fighters? Join Joe Porter on RNZ's Extra Time as we discuss the sporting week with sports writer Hamish Bidwell and journalists Barry Guy and Felicity Reid.

After days of back and forth between race organisers and the Challengers of Record, Luna Rossa, the America's Cup Challenger Selection Series final resumes this weekend. Luna Rossa lead the series 4-nil over Team UK and just need three more wins to get through to the America's Cup racing against Team New Zealand. RNZ’s Extra Time looks at this and whether the temporary halt to racing as a result of Covid-19 could prove to be a Godsend for Team UK. Joining Bridget Tunnicliffe on Extra Time are RNZ sports reporters Felicity Reid and Joe Porter and veteran sports broadcaster Bryan Waddle. The panel also discusses cricket, which comes back into focus next week. Can the White Ferns overcome current one-day world champions England on home soil? And are the Black Caps in a prime position to get a series win over their Australian rivals?

RNZ's Extra Time looks at the report into gymnastics in New Zealand which identified a culture of fear and retribution and led to the national body apologising to anyone who's been harmed as a result. Abusive coaches, body image issues, and children left in tears, were among the findings of the report into the culture of the sport - reiterating concerns raised in the media last year. Joining Bridget Tunnicliffe on RNZ's Extra Time this week to discuss the report are RNZ sports journalist Felicity Reid and Stuffs Zoe George. We also run the rule over experimental laws being introduced when Super Rugby Aotearoa kicks off at the end of the month. And it's game set match for Karl Budge, the outgoing tournament director of the ASB Tennis Classic.

After years of speculation about a potential code switch Roger Tuivasa-Sheck has confirmed he is leaving the Warriors and heading to rugby. This season will be the 27 year old's last at the Warriors as he chases his boyhood dream of making the All Blacks and playing at the 2023 World Cup. The panel discusses whether he can crack it in rugby and where it leaves the Warriors. Also on RNZs Extra Time this week, we ask if cricket has a problem with racism in the wake of two incidents in Wellington and Hawkes Bay. Sports journalist Hamish Bidwell gives an insight into how brutal premier cricket can be. And snowboarder Zoi Sadowski Synott tells us about the tricks that led to her recent success at the X Games in Colorado and what's in store for 2021. Also joining Bridget Tunnicliffe on Extra Time, is RNZ sports reporter Joe Porter and LockerRoom's Ashley Stanley.

The new sporting year is very much underway here in NZ, headlined for many by the America's Cup Challenger Series out on Auckland's Hauraki Gulf.