Those pesky Aussies might have moved ahead of us on the medal table but Kiwis have fresh cause to celebrate - we have won our 100th Olympic Games medal.
Yachties Peter Burling and Blair Tuke have secured the silver medal in the 49ers class at the Olympic regatta off Weymouth, officially bringing up a century of Games metal.
They’ll go down as winners of New Zealand’s 100th Olympic medal, but unlike most of the 99 before them, there certainly wasn’t the drama, tension, anticipation and excitement today.
The young sailors secured the silver medal two days ago, courtesy of a brilliantly consistent regatta, and had celebrated with their family and friends that night.
Today was simply a case to turning up for the medal race, which they did, winning New Zealand’s 19th ever silver medal.
New Zealand also has 40 golds and 41 bronze medals.
The Kiwis ended on a high note, too, finishing second in the double-point medal race.
Gold medallists Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen of Australia were fourth, while Denmark claimed the bronze medal by finishing third.
Appropriately, they will be handed their medals in a ceremony later this morning (NZT) by former New Zealand boardsailor Barbara Kendall, now a member of the International Olympic Committee.
Kendall won gold at Barcelona in 1992, which was also the last time New Zealand won a medal in any sailing class other than windsurfing.
Burling, 21, and Tuke, 23, have broken that drought, and they’ve done it emphatically.
Their efforts see the New Zealand Olympic team reach High Performance Sport New Zealand’s rather conservative medal target of 10 medals for these Games, with realistic medal chances still to come in BMX, canoe sprinting, women’s hockey and sailing.
New Zealand's Games squad went to London with a total of 90 medals earned during the history of summer and winter Olympics.
With nine medals garnered by our rowers, equestrian riders, track cyclists and the silver from Val Adams, Burling and Tuke were the first Kiwi sailors to strike a medal and therefore bring up the ton.
The effort conveniently diverts attention from the Australians finally passing New Zealand on the medal table after a big night in the cycling velodrome and London Stadium where they gained gold medals via Anna Meares and Sally Pearson.
New Zealand Olympic Committee officials had always believed we would win our 100th medal at these Games and will welcome the diversion from "Val-Gate" and the media attention around the gaffe that had Adams and four other Kiwi athletes left off starting confirmation lists for their individual events in London.
Fittingly, Burling and Tuke are considered long-term Olympians. Both are in their early-20s, and expected to have lengthy Olympic careers.
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