Kiwi team focus on fast recovery in Glasgow

Chef de Mission Rob Waddell. Photo / Brett Phibbs

New Zealand are hoping to derive benefits from a high performance centre they have established within their area at the Commonwealth Games athletes village.

An array of high performance equipment, such as Swiss balls, stretch mats, hot and cold baths are available to athletes, with the intention of enabling recovery in a familiar environment.

"It's been done in collaboration with High Performance Sport NZ," New Zealand chef de mission Rob Waddell said last night.

"We hope to get some performance benefit out of it but we're also looking forward to using it in Rio (for the 2016 Olympics). The pleasing this is the demand for it and it's being used in a wide variety of ways."

Waddell, on his first trip as chef de mission, said there are venue-specific facilities for the athletes, but this is an attempt to offer a bit more for them, based in their accommodation area.

"We've done something specifically for the New Zealand team which reflects their needs."

He understood England had a similar arrangement, and hosts Scotland, but not to the same degree.

There are about 200 New Zealand athletes in the village - bowlers, hockey teams, boxers, gymnasts, weightlifters, cyclists, the judo team and shooters are settled in - with the netballers, sevens and athletes to come.

The New Zealand numbers will peak tomorrow, the day before the opening ceremony.

The New Zealand flag bearer will be named at a function that night. Waddell has the sole choice of who does that role. He has taken some counsel but also had clear ideas on the type of person he wanted for the role.