Gordon Tietjens

Last updated

Gordon Tietjens
KNZM
Gordon Tietjens 2013.jpg
Tietjens in Fiji
Birth nameGordon Frederick Tietjens
Date of birth (1955-12-09) 9 December 1955 (age 68)
Place of birth Rotorua, New Zealand
HeightUnknown
Rugby union career
Provincial / State sides
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1977–1982 Bay of Plenty 81 ()
1983 Waikato 14 ()
1984–1986 Bay of Plenty [1] ()
National sevens team
YearsTeamComps
1983 New Zealand Sevens 1
Coaching career
YearsTeam
1994–2016 New Zealand Sevens
1996–2002 Bay of Plenty
2016–2020 Samoa national sevens team

Sir Gordon Frederick Tietjens KNZM ( /ˈtɪtʃənz/ ; born 9 December 1955) is head coach of the Samoa rugby sevens team, and a celebrated former coach of the New Zealand men's national team in rugby sevens, the All Blacks Sevens. [2] When the International Rugby Board inducted him into the IRB Hall of Fame in May 2012, it said that "Tietjens' roll of honour is without peer in Sevens, and perhaps in the game of rugby as a whole." [3] According to Spiro Zavos, Tietjens is "The greatest of all the Sevens coaches". [4]

Contents

As of his induction, he had coached the All Blacks Sevens to 10 series titles in the IRB Sevens World Series, the Rugby World Cup Sevens crown in 2001, and gold medals in four of the five Commonwealth Games in which the sport had been contested, losing the 2014 final in Glasgow. [3] He has also added two more IRB Sevens series titles (2013 and 2014), and a second Rugby World Cup Sevens crown (also in 2013).

Player development

Tietjens has coached many young players who have gone on to become All Blacks, including[ citation needed ] Christian Cullen, Jonah Lomu, Joe Rokocoko, Mils Muliaina, Rico Gear, Cory Jane, Ben Smith, Rieko Ioane, Israel Dagg, and Liam Messam. [5] Tietjens coached 44 players who went on to become All Blacks in the 15-a-side game and before his retirement, he was the only remaining active international coach from the amateur era. [6]

Tietjens is currently assisted by Eric Rush, a former long-serving captain of the New Zealand Sevens team and a former Sevens star himself.

Olympics

In 2012, his contract as the NZ Sevens coach was extended through to 2016. [7] This allows Tietjens to be part of Sevens rugby's first inclusion in the Olympic Games. According to then-World Rugby chairman Bernard Lapasset, sevens' inclusion in the Olympics was "in no small way down to Gordon Tietjens. Through his knowledge, passion, and expertise, he has driven the standards towards what we now celebrate as a truly global game of sevens." [6]

In the 1999 New Year Honours, Tietjens was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM); [8] in the 2007 New Year Honours, he was elevated to Companion of the same order (CNZM), [9] and in the 2013 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was further promoted to a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (KNZM). [10]

After an unsuccessful 2016 Olympics campaign, Tietjens stepped down from the All Black Sevens coaching position.

Samoa

In October 2016, Tietjens accepted the role of coach to the Samoa national sevens team. [11] In 2020, he announced that he would be stepping down from the head coaching role for the Samoa national sevens team stating that he wanted Samoa to be able to plan for the future. [12]

Achievements

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonah Lomu</span> New Zealand rugby union player (1975–2015)

Jonah Tali Lomu was a New Zealand professional rugby union player. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, and as one of the most talented sportsmen ever. Lomu is considered to have been the first true global superstar of rugby, and consequently had a huge impact on the game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waisale Serevi</span> Fijian rugby union footballer and coach (born 1968)

Waisale Tikoisolomoni Serevi is a Fijian former rugby union football player and coach, and is a member of the World Rugby Hall of Fame. Serevi is renowned for his achievements in rugby sevens, while also enjoying a long career in fifteen-a-side rugby at both club and national team levels. Nicknamed "The Wizard" by commentators, he is widely considered to be the greatest rugby sevens player in the history of the game. A biography of Serevi titled Waisale Serevi: King of Sevens by Nick Darvenzi was published in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilson Whineray</span> Rugby player

Sir Wilson James Whineray was a New Zealand business executive and rugby union player. He was the longest-serving captain of the national rugby union team, the All Blacks, until surpassed by Richie McCaw in 2014. Rugby writer Terry McLean considered him the All Blacks' greatest captain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Jones (rugby union)</span> Rugby player

Sir Michael Niko Jones is a New Zealand former rugby union player and coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rugby World Cup Sevens</span> International rugby sevens tournament

Rugby World Cup Sevens (RWCS) is the quadrennial world championship of rugby sevens, a variant of rugby union. Organised by World Rugby, it currently consists of men's and women's tournaments, and is the highest level of competition in the sport outside of the Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Rush</span> Rugby player

Eric James Rush is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and rugby sevens legend, and now a supermarket owner. His New Zealand Sevens career began in 1988 and ran until past his 39th birthday in 2004. Rush played in more than 60 tournaments, with the highlights being two Commonwealth Games gold medals and the World Cup Sevens victory in 2001. He was also voted Best and Fairest Player at the 1991 Hong Kong Sevens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bryan Williams (rugby union)</span> NZ international rugby union player & coach

Sir Bryan George Williams is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer and former coach of the Samoan national rugby team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand women's national rugby union team</span> National womens rugby union team

The New Zealand women's rugby union team, called the Black Ferns, represents New Zealand in women's international rugby union, which is regarded as the country's national sport. The team has won six out of nine Women's Rugby World Cup tournaments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Lochore</span> New Zealand rugby union player and coach (1940–2019)

Sir Brian James Lochore was a New Zealand rugby union player and coach who represented and captained the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. He played at number 8 and lock, as well as captaining the side 46 times. In 1999, Lochore was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DJ Forbes</span> New Zealand rugby union player

Derek Jamie "DJ" Forbes is a New Zealand former rugby union player and captain of the All Blacks Sevens team. Forbes is part Samoan, and also played rugby fifteens as a loose forward for Counties Manukau.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farah Palmer</span> Rugby player

Dame Farah Rangikoepa Palmer is a professor at Massey University and a former captain of New Zealand's women's rugby union team, the Black Ferns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Baker</span> New Zealand rugby union player

Kurt Baker is a New Zealand rugby union player, who currently plays as a fullback or wing for Old Glory DC in Major League Rugby (MLR).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Savea</span> Rugby player

Sio Julian Savea is a New Zealand professional rugby union player. He currently plays Wing or Centre for Wellington in the National Provincial Championship and Moana Pasifika in Super Rugby. Savea formerly played for Toulon in the Top 14 and the Hurricanes in Super Rugby. Between 2012 and 2017, he won 54 caps for New Zealand.

Lolagi Visinia is a rugby union player, who currently plays as a wing or fullback for Auckland in New Zealand's domestic National Provincial Championship competition. He was born and raised in New Zealand, but has represented both New Zealand and Manu Samoa internationally.

Belgium Tuatagaloa is a rugby union player who has represented the New Zealand Sevens team, in 2012 and 2013, and Samoa in sevens 2015-2017 and in fifteens from 2019. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, he qualifies for Samoa through heritage. He has played for Canterbury in the ITM Cup and for Valence Romans Rugby in France's Fédérale 1, the third division. He currently plays for Rouen in the Pro D2. He has also played for London Irish and in 2022 played for Racing 92 in the Supersevens Tournament where he was named in the tournament team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Webber</span> Rugby player

Tevarn Joseph Webber is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a back for the New Zealand national sevens team.

Anna Mary Richards is a former New Zealand rugby union player. She represented New Zealand and won four Rugby World Cups — 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portia Woodman</span> New Zealand rugby union player (born 1991)

Portia Woodman-Wickliffe is a New Zealand rugby union player. She plays fifteen-a-side and seven-a-side rugby union, and was a member of the New Zealand women's national rugby sevens team and New Zealand women's national rugby union team. Woodman was a member of the New Zealand Women's Sevens team that won a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and gold medals at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. She retired from international sevens rugby after the Paris Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theresa Fitzpatrick</span> New Zealand rugby union player

Theresa Matauaina Setefano is a New Zealand rugby union player. She was a member of the Black Ferns champion 2017 and 2021 Rugby World Cup squads. She has also represented New Zealand in rugby sevens; she won gold medals at the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens, 2018 Commonwealth Games, 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. She played for the Blues Women in the 2022 Super Rugby Aupiki season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honey Hireme</span> NZ dual code international rugby player

Arneta Honey Hireme-Smiler is a former New Zealand rugby football player who has represented her country in rugby league, rugby sevens and rugby union. Due to her multi-sport career, Hireme-Smiler has been referred to as Honey Bill Williams, in reference to her New Zealand male counterpart Sonny Bill Williams.

References

  1. ↑ New Zealand Olympic Committee. "Gordon Tietjens" . Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  2. ↑ New Zealand 7s Scrum.com news, 2 February 2010
  3. 1 2 "Gordon Tietjens inducted to IRB Hall of Fame" (Press release). International Rugby Board. 13 May 2012. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  4. ↑ Spiro Zavos (30 November 2015). "SPIRO: Where is the ARU plan to win Sevens Olympic gold in Rio?". The Roar. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  5. ↑ Lomu and Cullen requested for sevens duty Scrum.com news, 6 December 1999
  6. 1 2 Foster Niumata (25 May 2016). "The ruthless coach who helped sevens into Olympics". AP. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Tietjens to coach NZ sevens at Rio Olympics | Stuff.co.nz". 7 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "New Year honours list 1999". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 1998. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  9. ↑ "Queen's Birthday Honours List 2007". Honours List. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet of New Zealand. 31 December 2006. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  10. ↑ "Queen's Birthday honours list 2013". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
  11. ↑ "News Details | allblacks.com". Archived from the original on 6 September 2016.
  12. ↑ "Sevens legend Sir Gordon Tietjens to end his time as Samoa Sevens coach". 19 May 2020.
  13. ↑ www.allblacks.com https://web.archive.org/web/20140102193828/http://www.allblacks.com/news/15120/2010-Steinlager-Rugby-Awards-winners-announced. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.