Rugby: Blyde taking time out post another gold

Will Johnston 

A well-deserved break is on the cards for Black Fern and Taranaki sevens star Michaela Blyde.  

After claiming back-to-back Olympic gold medals, Blyde, 28, said after an intense year building up to the tournament from the team’s base in Tauranga, she’s personally had a “constant rotation of training” for the last 12 years.  

“For me, I need to take a really good mental break from the game, however long that may be,” she said from her parent’s Lepperton farm.  

After winning the final 19-12 against Canada at the end of July, her priorities have drastically shifted from on the field to off it. She hopes to spend time organising her wedding with fiancé and New Zealand rower Michael Brake in January.  

“That’s the priority as well, making sure that’s put in place, it’s organised and it’s looking good. I’m really excited to marry Michael and start the next chapter of our life.”  

When comparing the two gold medals, she said there are differences between them. Covid challenges were still present in Tokyo and the team had to perform in front of their management team. 

In Paris, it was the complete opposite. 

“We went from 10 people in the crowd at Tokyo to 69,000 in Paris. That’s what I’ve dreamt of doing for a long time to perform in front of that many people.”  

“Tokyo was emotional for me. It was the first gold for us, and it was where I accomplished my dream, a dream I had since I was five,” she said.   

Standing on the podium in Paris, she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness and relief that all the hard work had paid off.  

“There is that expectation with our success rate, we were always going to be a favourite. We put such high expectations on ourselves that anything less than gold is disappointing.”  

Blyde had an inkling that things would fall into place. The team built a strong culture and the trainings when they arrived in Paris were “unreal.”  

“We were on a train and didn’t stop. We constantly improved, everything clicked and at the end of training we felt like we wanted to do more because it was so exciting.”  

What fans saw on television of the obvious bond the team had was the reality behind the scenes, she said, but that came from hard work.   

“A lot of people saw the glory and the fun stuff on TV, there’s a lot of hard work that goes on to make sure our culture is aligned.”  

A personal highlight for Blyde was meeting Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who gave the team “energy from her presence.” 

Blyde admits thinking of a third Olympic medal in 2028 is tiring but is contracted with New Zealand Rugby until the end of 2026, which takes her commitment out to the Commonwealth Games and the Sevens World Cup.  

“When I kick back into world series next year, I will give everything I can for as long as I can.”   

She’s looking to put the boots back on in October.