Inspiring story of how a New Zealand woman, four-time Olympic windsurfing champion got to the top — and stayed there.
Barbara Kendall is one of New Zealand’s most successful Olympians and also one of its best-loved
athletes. In 2008 she went to her fifth Olympics, having previously won gold at the Barcelona
Olympics, silver at Atlanta and bronze at Sydney. Barbara won her first world championship title at
the age of 20 and dominated the world windsurfing rankings for the past 21 years.
A role model for all New Zealanders, she now has two children as well as being a professional athlete and working for her sponsors. In addition, she travels New Zealand giving motivational speaking presentations, or works overseas in her role with the Athletes’ Commission of the International Olympic Committee.
Windsurfing is an exciting but challenging sport, and Barbara’s years of experience in racing and tactics, and her knowledge of weather conditions and windsurfing equipment play a big part in her success. But the most important factor of all is her desire and drive to win, and managing the psychology of winning has been her biggest challenge.
