Read and Whitelock named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit

Former All Blacks captain Kieran Read and former Black Sticks women's captain Kayla Whitelock’s achievements have been recognised and they have been named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Read is recognised for his services to rugby in New Zealand, having retired from Test duty after last year's Rugby World Cup in Japan.

He has played 128 Tests for the All Blacks, the third most capped player in New Zealand history, 52 of those as captain.

Read was also involved in the 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories.

Away from rugby, Read has also worked as an ambassador of the Child Cancer Foundation for the past decade, as well as also serving as an ambassador for the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Trust from 2011 to 2017.

Whitelock has represented the Black Sticks women at four Olympic Games, including as captain at the 2012 games in London and the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.

She has played 255 games for the New Zealand women's side and she is the second-most capped Black Stick in history.

Whitelock also attended three Commonwealth Games, where she won two medals, a silver in 2014 in Glasgow, and a bronze in Delhi 2010.

Off the field, Whitelock has also dedicated many hours towards serving the hockey community as a volunteer, mentoring the next generation of Kiwi girls in the sport.

[Source: TVNZ]