The Olympic rowing gold medallist Hamish Bond says he didn't realise how much sport played in New Zealanders lives until he returned home with his London medal.
Bond has Eric Murray who won gold in the pairs at the London Games are among several Olympians who have been recognised in the New Year's Honours List.
They have been made Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
Bond says it's indicative of the effect sport has on New Zealanders and he regularly gets approached by people who want to congratulate him.
Fellow rowersJoseph Sullivan and Nathan Cohen, who also won gold in London, have also been made Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit, as have sailors Jo Aleh and Olivia Powrie and kayaker Lisa Carrington, all gold medal winners.
