After considering the values that are important to them, young men were asked to think about someone they admire and to articulate what it was about that person that they admired. It is fantastic to see the many very positive role models that were identified. Here is some of what we were told:

I admire my dad because he showed great resilience when he and his parents and siblings arrived in New Zealand as refugees after fleeing from their country.

I admire my dad because he's always there to support and encourage me.

The people I admire most are my parents. I admire them for facing all the setbacks life throws at you and facing the challenge.

I admire my grandfather for his ingenuity, persistence and his perfectionism towards everything that he builds.

I admire Ross Taylor the famous New Zealand cricketer. I admire Ross because I met him in 2018 before a big test match, this is one of the reasons I admire him as he used some of his practice time to talk to me about cricket and even let me use his bat, he's and awesome cricketer who's been on top of his game for years, he's a great guy on and off the field and because he inspires me to try hard, persevere and be the best person I can be.

I admire my father. This is because he came from China with little to nothing, but despite this, he persevered, and he now has a good job and a family he can support with the income of that job.

I admire Aaron Fotheringham, because he never gave up and kept going.

Marcus Rashford, he is an English football player who plays for Manchester United. He was awarded the MBE award at only 22 due to his services to vulnerable children in the U.K. during the pandemic.

I admire my brother because he has good friends and is happy and I want to be happy like him.

The person that I admire the most is a friend, everyday I come to school and talk or play basketball with that friend it makes my day so much more enjoyable.

The person I admire the most is my dad. He is always very kind and caring and stays calm in tough situations. Even though he has a lot of work to do sometimes, he is willing to help me when I need it. I am very grateful for him as he cooks me dinner and drives me to school every day. He is always trying to make me happy, no matter what. This is why I admire him so much because he is always striving to improve his and my own life, and he is overall a great person to be around because he never fails to make other people cheerful.

I admire Albert Einstein because he changed the way we see the world and continues to change technology with his theories, even though he is gone.

I admire my sister. She is very courageous and thoughtful.

I admire my mother because she is the embodiment of resilience, she is humble, selfless, and caring to everyone around her.

I admire Kevin De Bruyne as he is determined to do his best and never gives up on his goal.

The person that I admire is my mum because early in the morning she wakes up and goes straight outside and starts working hard and doesn't stop until the end of the day, even if it is pouring down with rain, she will do what needs to be done no matter how hard it is.

The person that I admire is Enaiatollah from the book 'In the Sea there are Crocodiles'. I admire him because he wasn't well brought up and whenever a problem would come his way, he would be resilient and try to find a way to fix the problem.

I admire Barack Obama as despite the fact the was running the third biggest country by population he still managed to be down to earth, funny, and kind.

I really admire my older sister. She is a kind person and shows many acts of determination and perseverance. She studies hard and gets great grades. My sister may be an annoyance to some people (including me sometimes), but she will always be a role-model for the people around her. My sister's main traits to me would be perseverance, conscience, kindness, hard-working, patience and integrity. She would never purposefully try to hurt others' feelings and never steps up to violence. Instead, she portrays a great example of how to work hard to achieve her goals. She will strive to do the right thing, even without an audience. But her kindness and caring shines brighter than her other traits. She will treat everybody the same and isn't swayed by race or gender. She also is willing to help other people, so that they can carry on. Of course, just like everybody else, my sister isn't perfect and is a normal person with normal emotions. She may show anger and fear sometimes and will also show sadness and disgust at other times. Though I still love my sister, and I aspire to be like her.

The person I admire is my mum because she helps me with everyday tasks and helps me with school and to be a happier person. She also helps to keep the house from falling apart. She does lots of cleaning and chores, that’s why I admire my mum.

I admire my family the most for sending me to a good school, providing me with lots of food and for a nice warm house.

I admire Greg Inglis, a NRL legend and inspiration to strive for better.

A person I admire is my mum. The reason I admire her is because she does all the things, she doesn't want to do and more. I admire my mum and am grateful because she does all the cooking, cleaning, and driving. She doesn't complain even though I know she despise doing all these things. A major reason I admire her is because she is living in a country she doesn't like; she wants to go back to China. But for five years, she stayed here. She is a housewife, but she doesn't like being one she enjoys having a job and getting her own money, but she doesn't complain. All these shows that she has persistence, integrity and more. And all these traits make me admire her.

The person that I most admire would be my dad because of many reasons, but the one that made me chose him is that he is very encouraging and doesn't just think about himself, even though I know many others that resemble this quality my dad I one of few that shows it very well.

I admire a famous person because they could not get to where they are without putting in all the hard work that no one sees and I would like to do all the hard work behind the scenes and people won't know what I've done until I show them.

I admire my grandpa because he is great at making things with wood.

Who do I admire the most? Cristiano Ronaldo. I admire him because of his work ethic and his will to be the best no matter what.

I admire my oldest sister. This is because she has achieved so much for being quite young and she is always ready to help and give advice when I'm in need.

I admire my Dad because of how he has improved our family’s dairy farm, by increasing the amount of cows we own by roughly 280 from 90 to 370. He has also improved their genetic ranking by choosing the right animals to breed with. Our herd is now ranked in the top 10 herds in the country out of 10.5 thousand. My Dad also enhanced the cow’s pasture by making it more nutritious.

The person I admire is my mum. I admire her because she is determined, hardworking and will stop at nothing to succeed, help her friends and family.

I admire Albert Einstein because of all his accomplishments. He was very important and created or changed many scientific theories.

I admire my grandad as he always supports me at everything I do.

My dad. He's a hard worker who didn't get the benefits of what I have and still got a high paying job to help the family out. I wish to be like him someday so I can help my family in the future.

I admire my dad because he is extremely hard working and is always honest with me.

The person/people I admire are my swim coaches, no matter the weather, even if it's storming, they'll come and stand outside in the cold and coach us.

I admire one of my friends. He is a hard worker and when he says he will do something he does it, even though it will take a long time and it is boring. He doesn't show jealousy even when someone is better than him, he would just work hard to catch up to the person who is better than him. He never gives up, in video games and in real world. When he wants a great mark, he would spend his time and doing it over and over until he reaches his aiming point.

I admire my dad because he is always working hard.

I admire my mother because she does so much for me.

I admire my mum because she does everything for me, like signing me up for sports, making my lunch and much more. She is there for me with everything I do, I am very grateful that she is in my life.

A person I admire is Paul Walker. He was my favorite and still is my favorite actor in my favorite movie series, and he died very tragically and I look up to him.

I admire my brother; he keeps me motivated and ready to go.

I admire my nana because she is always there for me and is a great person to talk to and will always give me help if I need it.

This person I admire does a lot for me. Being graceful and caring for me are just a few of their character traits.

There are many people I admire, probably the most are the teachers and people who help me improve and learn. I think the person who I admire the most is my sports coach and teacher for sports D, this is because they are always helping me improve and learn they give me work tips and things I need to work on like bowling and batting drills they are always inspiring me to try new things holding a ball differently running in straight. This is why they are the people that I admire because they are always ready to tell you what you need to do and what is best for you.

The person I admire the most is my older sister and brother-in-law because they are always there for me even though they live 5 hours away from me they can still talk to me on my phone.

I admire my Mum because she puts so much love and effort into her children!

The person who I admire is my friend, who is quite polite and tries to help his other friends in any way he can by offering his goods or with some encouraging comments.

The person I admire is my mum because she cares and looks after me even if I do something wrong or make mistakes.

I admire my Mum because she is caring, encouraging and kind.

New Zealand Rugby Selections