KEY POINTS:
Scott Dixon's victory in the Indianapolis 500 this morning certainly ranks among the most notable achievements by New Zealand sporting heroes on the international stage.
Here's a list of other prominent achievements:
* * * * * * * *
May 26, 2008 Scott Dixon wins the
Indianapolis 500.
2006/7 Katherine Prumm wins back-to-back world womens motocross championship titles.
2005 Michael Campbell wins the US Open golf championship.
2004 Boardsailor Barbara Kendall continues her remarkable run of Olympic success. She won medals at Barcelona (gold) in 1992, Atlanta in 1996 and Sydney in 2000, finished 5th at Athens in 2004, and has been selected for this year's Games in Beijing. She will thus be the first woman from New Zealand to compete at five Olympic Games.
1996 Swimmer Danyon Loader wins two gold medals at the Atlanta Olympic Games.
1995 NZL 32 ("Black Magic") defeats Dennis Conner's Stars & Stripes off San Diego to win yachting's holy grail, the America's Cup, with skipper Russell Coutts at the helm. Team New Zealand successfully defends the Cup in 1999-2000 at Auckland.
1990s Possum Bourne wins the Asia Pacific rally title three times and the Australian Rally Championship seven times.
1990 Sir Richard Hadlee becomes the first bowler in cricket history to take 400 test wickets. He eventually finished his career on a total of 431 victims. (That mark has subsequently been surpassed by, first, Kapil Dev, then, in turn, Courtney Walsh, Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan. Murali currently has the previously unimaginable tally of 710 test scalps.)
1989 Sir Peter Blake wins the Whitbred Round the World yacht race skippering Steinlager. In 1994, Blake won the Jules Verne Trophy by setting the fastest time around the world of 74 days, 22 hours and 17 minutes on the catamaran Enza.
1987 The All Blacks win the inaugural Rugby World Cup.
1983 Rod Dixon wins the New York marathon.
1981 Alison Roe wins the New York marathon.
1975 John Walker becomes the world record holder for the mile and is the first man in history to run the mile under 4'50", setting a time of 3 min 49.4 sec at a night track meet in Gothenberg, Sweden. A year later, Walker wins gold in the 1500 metres at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games.
1972 The New Zealand mens rowing Eight wins gold at the Munich Olympics.
1968 Motorbike ace Ivan Mauger wins the first of his six world championship speedway titles.
1967 Bert Munro sets a world under-1000cc motorcycle land speed record -which still stands today - at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on his self-modified Indian motorbike.
1967 Denny Hulme becomes the World Formula One Champion, driving for the Brabham racing team.
1966 Chris Amon and co-driver Bruce McLaren win the Le Mans 24-hour endurance race.
1963 Bob Charles wins the British Open golf championship.
1960 Murray Halberg wins Olympic gold in the 5000 metres at Rome - New Zealand middle distance running is truly in its heyday.
1960 Peter Snell wins the gold medal and sets a world record time in the 800 metres at the Rome Olympics. Four years later at the Tokyo games, he achieved a remarkable double, winning the gold in both the 800 metres and the 1500m. No other athlete has ever won this "double" at any Olympics since. Snell was recently voted New Zealand's Sports Champion of the 20th Century.
1952 Yvette Williams becomes the first New Zealand woman to win an Olympic gold medal, winning the long jump at Helsinki.
1936 Athlete Jack Lovelock wins the 1500 metres at the Berlin Olympics.
1910-13 Anthony Wilding wins four straight Wimbledon men's singles titles in tennis.