Kia Ora MLH today I will be sharing my speech with you hope you enjoy!
In my opinion, The Addams family is by far the most successfully sporting family in NZ. With Valerie, Steven and Lisa all representing their country in shotput and basketball. What makes this family so extraordinary on the sports field? There are 21 children in the Addams family, they are an athletic bunch and very tall. Females are on average 6 feet and males are 6 feet- 9 inches. Not only are they physically strong they have a strong work ethic.
Although the siblings may have different mothers Sid (their father) was a powerful influence. Sid was a hard worker, who believed in putting 100% effort into everything he did. Sid is 2m tall and almost as tall as Sam Whitelock!
Dame Valerie Adams is a four-time world champion, two-time Olympic, three-time Commonwealth Games champion, and twice IAAF Continental Cup winner. Valerie has a personal best throw of 21.24 meters! Dame Valerie Adams is a world champion in the shot put. In 1999 she competed in her first World Youth Championships and finished in tenth place! Two years later in 2001, Valerie won gold at the World Youth Championships in Hungary. What an improvement! Valerie has inspired a lot of people including me to dream big and go for gold. Valerie trains two a day and never misses a session.
Lisa Adams is an NZ shot putter and discus thrower. She competed at the 2020 summer Paralympics in Japan and won gold. She is 1.8m tall and has a personal best throw of 15.12m and is coached by the one and only Dame Valerie Adams.
Dame Valerie Adams is a four-time world champion, two-time Olympic, three-time Commonwealth Games champion, and twice IAAF Continental Cup winner. Valerie has a personal best throw of 21.24 meters! Dame Valerie Adams is a world champion in the shot put. In 1999 she competed in her first World Youth Championships and finished in tenth place! Two years later in 2001, Valerie won gold at the World Youth Championships in Hungary. What an improvement! Valerie has inspired a lot of people including me to dream big and go for gold. Valerie trains two a day and never misses a session.
Lisa Adams is an NZ shot putter and discus thrower. She competed at the 2020 summer Paralympics in Japan and won gold. She is 1.8m tall and has a personal best throw of 15.12m and is coached by the one and only Dame Valerie Adams.
Lisa has cerebral palsy which impacts the entire left side of her body. Cerebral Palsy affects movement and posture. But she has worked past that and striving to do the best of her ability. She was rewarded by winning gold a the Tokyo Paralympics.
Steven Adams is one the most committed basketballer players in the NBA! When he was 13 years old his father passes away and Steven was devastated. He started to skip school. His older brother enrolled him with a basketball team in Wellington. Every day at 5:15 his coach would call to tell him to get ready and meet him at the basketball courts by 6:00.Steven never missed a training session in four and a half years! He even had extra sessions on the weekends. He now plays professional basketball, and has a networth of $20 million. Steven is 2.11 m, and weighs 120 kgs!
So that is why I think the Adams family is by far the most successful sporting families in NZ! With Valerie’s integrity, Lisa’s perseverance, and Stevens’s commitment they all are unstoppable!
