Why are Kiwi's so good at sport?

Why are Kiwis so good at sport? The school is sport mad with students playing ball games every lunch and breaktime. From touch rugby to 2/3 person games bouncing a tennis ball – no rules banning ball games near buildings! The sports results are mentioned in every staff briefing. Student matches are mainly at the weekend as they involve travelling as there isn’t the population locally to produce good enough competition. Therefore sometimes school teams are also in adult leagues (girls 1st XI netball got to the final of the Premier Nelson League.) There is also a winter and summer sports week where all schools send their teams to national or North and South Island competitions. Outdoor Education is a big part of the curriculum and is loved and valued by academic and non-academic students alike. The only sport I have seen so far is the boys 1st XI hockey who went down 4-1 to Timaru Boys High School. The standard would have been fairly unheard of in a state school and comparable with some of the better private schools. At half time the spectating rugby team did their Hakka! The rugby teams apparently travel regularly and don’t limit themselves to just sports week. This requires a huge commitment from staff and definitely not just the PE staff.