Top-flight international rugby referee Ben O’Keeffe. Photo / Getty Images
Top-flight international rugby referee Ben O’Keeffe. Photo / Getty Images
Each day on The Great New Zealand Road Trip, we catch up with a notable and noteworthy New Zealander, posing to them the same nine questions. Today, international rugby referee Ben O’Keeffe responds.
What’s one word to sum up your mood right now?
Exhausted. I’ve just returned from the Lionsseries in Australia. It was a great experience – full of intense pressure, excitement and fun – but it takes not just a physical but a mental toll.
What do you wish people knew about where you live?
How quiet and beautiful the North Shore is, especially early morning walks along Takapuna Beach. Then the quick access over the bridge into the vibrant bars, cafes and restaurants in the city makes it a great spot.
Ben O'Keefe and fiancee Wilhelmina Shrimpton at their engagement party earlier this year. Photo / supplied
What are your passions?
I love the challenge of refereeing a test match in front of thousands of people, and I am really passionate about helping people with my medicine. I work in a pretty high-defeat role refereeing games of rugby, so it’s really special when I can see a patient in clinic and they come in and thank me for helping them with an issue that they had a few weeks before. I get a buzz from that.
Which New Zealander (alive or dead) do you most admire – and why?
Fred Hollows. He gave the gift of sight to so many people in and outside of New Zealand. He pioneered so much in the field of ophthalmology, and his legacy lives on with his foundation and the reason for a lot of altruistic work that many ophthalmologists do around Australasia.
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Time off when I am at home and relaxing with my fiancee, listening to music, cooking and making sure close family are safe and comfortable.
What is your greatest fear?
It used to be failing at what I am trying to achieve, but now it’s more around not wanting to miss out on important experiences by being too busy.
What is it that you most dislike?
I’m normally pretty relaxed and not much flusters me, but I do dislike it when people are rude to one another, especially online when people choose to be negative towards one another. I have copped my fair share of it and I see a lot of it still happening to younger people. I hope we can get past this in the future.
What is on your bucket list?
Hot air balloon ride in Turkey at sunrise. That will be amazing.
What do you hope/think NZ will look like in 10 years?
I hope people are happy, interest rates are low, the cost of living comes down and the All Blacks would have won two more World Cups.
Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor.
