Emma Interviews Adam Gard'ner, who at the time of the interview was Tennis New Zealand Coach Development Manager. Adam is an extraordinary human and his story is one worth sharing.
Adam Gard’ner is an advocate for the value of play and physical activity as contributors to wellbeing and resilience. He has enjoyed travelling the world with the sport of tennis, and now relishes the opportunity to return to his hometown, making a home with his family on the street where he grew up.
After 12 years in Shanghai, Adam and his wife, Lucy, and their children, Joey, 14, Grace, 12, and Charlotte, 10, returned home to post-earthquake Christchurch three years ago. "Shanghai was an amazing experience, we saw a massive amount of change there where I was working as a tennis coach for the largest tennis and coaching organisation. The earthquake brought us back home... we felt it was time to get home to our families."
Living overseas for an extended period - Adam's tennis career took him from Europe to the United States before he landed in Shanghai - he become more attached to his memories of life in New Zealand. "You become more attached to your home because you have such a love for it. When I came home I thought 'I have to embrace this'."
In 2017, Adam joined the team at Tennis New Zealand, but he still belongs to the first tennis club he joined in 1988 - Waimairi - and his parents still live in Broadfield. As Healthy Families Ōtautahi Christchurch Play Systems Innovator, Adam worked alongside our wider Sport Canterbury team, to support community-led initiatives that represent healthy change.