Olympics: New Zealand quotes from the Olympic Games

New Zealand quotes from the Olympic Games:

THE GOOD

"Suddenly the Great Wall of China jumped out in front of me." sculling bronze medallist Mahe Drysdale on his late race collapse.

"Oh, what a show. Oh, what a showoff too." an editorial on sprint ace Usain Bolt in the Chicago Tribune.

"As soon as I saw on the board, when it came up, I thought instantly there and then, screw the last throw. I'm done, I've won." - Valerie Vili after her gold medal winning shot put performance.

"I've always walked out of the boat. It was almost embarrassing I suppose, to do that." sculler Mahe Drysdale on being wiped out by his race.

"The French guy almost got me on the inside. I thought I had it with 60m to go, but with 20m I saw him on the big screen, so I had to really dip. He screamed in despair, when he realised he didn't get it." 1500m bronze medallist Nick Willis.

"It was stunning. He's obviously run the race of his life. I could not see him as being a medallist. John Walker did but I didn't. I am glad to be wrong! It's a fabulous effort." Olympic great Peter Snell on Nick Willis.

"I've been kinda on the verge of tears for the last 24 hours, I managed to hold it all in but the relief killed a little bit of that," sailing gold medallist Tom Ashley.

"Even if we won silver I would still feel unsatisfied." rowing bronze medallist Nathan Twaddle.

"I wanted to put out the biggest throw in the first round and obviously it worked, because then the pressure was right on them to try and kick my butt, which they didn't do." shot putter Valerie Vili keeps her butt kick free.

"He's had meticulous training, he's young so he's fit and strong, and you have to be a bit psycho to be the best, and he is so it's perfect." Barbara Kendall on Tom Ashley.

"I was on the piss last night, sorry mate." Bevan Docherty, tells Nick Willis at a press conference that he missed his 1500m race.

THE BAD

"The one I fell off on." equestrian Andrew Nicholson, after a reporter asked him which cross-country fence he found hardest.

"What for? I was shit." boardsailor Barbara Kendall after a Chinese reporter congratulated her on finishing 21st placing in race 10.

"I'd say I'd be paying about 58 bucks for a medal at the moment, I'm going pretty average," Ben Fouhy on his medal chances after the kayaking heats.

"I'm a lot happier, I'm through to the final. You can't win lotto if you don't have a ticket." Ben Fouhy.

"I went but I hated it. There was too much standing up -- I was in chronic pain. I get tired walking from here to our (warm down) area let alone standing up for five hours." BMX rider Marc Willers was not too fussed on the opening ceremony.

"For athletes, no problem." World tennis star Roger Federer, after a request from New Zealand hockey players Hayden Shaw and Dave Kosoof for a photo.

"It is impossible really, there are so many athletes asking for photos and so on. It is not ideal to prepare." Federer at a news conference the next day.

"It's his birthday today, so it's probably not the greatest day -- usually he's got a sore head the day after his birthday, but he's woken up with it on the day of his birthday." hockey manager Kevin Marr reports on a head injury to Blair Hopping.

"Yesterday was a big burn, everyone's been building up for five years for that one day and then it rains so your brain just goes crazy." BMX rider Marc Willers after rain delays the BMX competition.

"Personally, I think it's a top-four decision, I'm prepared to say that. Quite often the tough decisions go with the teams in the top four and you don't get the rub of the green." women's hockey coach Kevin Towns on a late decision that cost his side against Germany.

"Hopefully I will be able to make it down there and hopefully, all the best for Duncan." American swimming great Michael Phelps when told swimming coach Duncan Laing was ill in Dunedin.

"It's gutting. I can't believe that, I can't believe it. I'm very, very angry at myself. I had no idea she was coming, you get into that stadium and there's so much noise." marathon runner Nina Rillstone gutted to lose out in a sprint for 15th place.

"That was great. I saw them screaming and I waved, but I just wanted to throw up, though. I wanted to throw up from 35km on." Liza Hunter-Galvan spots her family in the crowd lining the marathon route.

"I feel like ... I can be pretty dominant at the Comm Games. No one will get close." after finishing 21st, weightlifter Richard Patterson looks ahead to New Delhi.

"(Coaches) Ian Ferguson and Paul MacDonald saw some but they kept it a bit quiet. Paul fell out at one stage in training. Ferg couldn't believe how quickly he got back into the boat." Grant Restall, flatwater kayaking manager on crocodiles in their North Queensland training water.

"Mum also wanted to name me something unusual so no one else was called it. I think she did a good job" slalom canoeist Luuka Jones on being named after Audrey Hepburn's son.

"As you Kiwis would say I'm gutted." Canadian BMX coach Ken Cools after his charges missed out on medals.

"We don't talk about it. Seriously." -- equestrian Andrew Nicholson tires of questions about Mark Todd's comeback from eight years of retirement.

"I'm used as cannon fodder basically, send the old bugger out there and see what happens I guess." -- Mark Todd after he was chosen to lead off New Zealand's three-day eventing campaign in the dressage.

"It's very disappointing, but that's the sport. I've had bad days before, Olympics aren't very lucky places for me." -- Andrew Nicholson after a fall from Lord Killinghurst saw him eliminated from the three-day event.

"You've got to take the knocks with all the good things." -- New Zealand men's hockey coach Shane McLeod after Spain scored in the last five seconds of their pool match, a result that came back to haunt the Black Sticks.

"I can't be bothered doing anything .....everyone will think that's cold, but I don't care." -- Willers again, not exactly embracing his first Olympic experience.

"I set up my bed in the lounge for three weeks. To get here and win a medal is pretty unbelievable" -- Cycling team pursuit member Sam Bewley reminisces about watching the Athens Olympics while wearing the bronze he won on the track.

"It's been unreal. There's some action-packed drama going on out on the track. You see most of these sports in the Olympics, some of them are, I hate to say, a little bit boring at times" -- New Zealand BMX coach Ken Cools on his sport's Olympic debut.

THE UGLY

"Hello." Jamaican sprint ace Usain Bolt gives the only possible answer to an insightful TVNZ question, about what he wanted to say to New Zealand.

"Germany first, Britain second, and New Zealand third," TVNZ's Peter Montgomery calls the Evers-Swindell's finish, getting every boat in the wrong position.

"New Zealand have won it, it's black to gold!" Montgomery, after the photo finish.

"The sheer fact that I'm here (in Beijing) is exciting." discus thrower Beatrice Faumuina says she's thrilled to be at the Olympics.

"You can't take this moment away from me no matter how much you write it off." Faumuina finishes 28th, but says she's still thrilled to be at the Olympics.

"Beatrice has indicated she wants to go home earlier. If she does choose to go, it's at her cost." chef de mission Dave Currie.