Opunake

 Opunake's most famous son, Peter Snell, has been honoured by the small coastal Taranaki town. The triple Olympic gold medallist returned home to unveil a $50,000 bronze statue of himself.
New Plymouth sculptor Fridjof Hansen created Opunake's Peter Snell statue.

The great Peter Snell was one of the most powerful middle-distance runners of all time. He burst onto the international arena as the surprise winner of the 800 metres at the Rome Olympics in 1960, and in Tokyo in 1964 he won gold medals over 800 and 1500 metres. In all he held eight world records.

Since that time world-class runners have broken Snell's records over those distances, but nobody – before, during or since – has come close to matching Snell's withering power over the final few hundred metres. After retiring from running at an early age, Snell went to work and study in the United States. As a self-confessed high-school underachiever, unused to academic study, he initially struggled. But he went on to obtain two university degrees and is now an acknowledged world expert on aging, exercise, nutrition and human performance.

This statue stands on the corner of Surf Highway (Tasman Street) and Napier Street in Opunake, the town where Peter Snell was born.