New Zealand's most successful Olympian, who has been called "the Usain Bolt of kayaking", has been appointed a dame.
Lisa Carrington with her gold medal for the K1 200m won at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Photo: Photosport / Steve McArthur
Lisa Carrington has won six Olympic medals, five golds and a bronze, across a total of 23 medals in her canoe racing career.
She became the first female triple gold medallist from New Zealand at this year's Olympic Games.
She said the first step to success is just showing up.
"Specially as an athlete - you get tired, you get hungry, grumpy, life gets a bit hard so I think when I'm in those moments it's OK let's not feel sorry for myself, I've just got to turn up because every time I turn up means I'm getting a little bit better."
Dame Lisa said 2022 will hold more of the same for her, as she continues to become a better kayaker while still enjoying herself.
Minister of Sport and Recreation Grant Robertson said Carrington is a remarkable athlete.
He described her as tough, determined and consistent but off the water she was also a well-rounded, humble and kind person.
"This honour is recognition of all her attributes and qualities. She is truly one of our greatest ever sportspeople."
Carrington embarked on an unprecedented challenge in Tokyo, contesting four different kayaking events at one Olympics.
Beforehand she told RNZ that, in the end, her willingness to truly test the extent of her abilities was the deciding factor.
"I guess I kinda figured, if I can do it, why not try. No-one's done it and it's a big ask but why not take that opportunity and not play it too safe.
"That's what's exciting. It's about putting myself out there and doing the best I can."
In the end she won three gold medals in the K1 200m, K1 500m and K2 500m (with Caitlin Regal) and was narrowly pipped for a fourth medal in the K4 event, with the crew finishing fourth in the final.
Lisa Carrington wins the K1 200 at the Sea Forest Waterway in Tokyo in August. Photo: © Steve McArthur / www.photosport.nz
Describing the event as a "pretty special Olympics", Dame Lisa said soon afterwards that she was still wrapping her head around it, as her years of hard work paid off.
"I know what I've put in and it's been a lot of hard work, but it's something I've wanted to do and constantly get better."
At the time family friend Tony Lovett, who co-founded the Eastern Bay Canoe Racing Club with Carrington's dad, told Morning Report that he reckoned Dame Lisa was "the Usain Bolt of kayaking".
"With Lisa, she went to London and to everybody's surprise won the 200. I think Gordy [Walker] was surprised, her coach was surprised that she won that 200. And from winning that gold medal in London in the 200, everyone was going, 'holy s..t, what has she just done?'
"Then they realised what this girl was capable of and it's taken two more Olympics for that young woman to become a New Zealand sports star to a world superstar. And I think she deserves that mantle, she's up there with Usain Bolt, she's up there with the Michael Phelps, she deserves that status."
Dame Lisa hopes that her successes can inspire other Kiwis to "believe and do things that they thought they never could've".
Her goal has always been simply to master her own talent and get better with each performance.
"For me to be able to achieve so highly, I guess is to not make it about the results, but for me to be able to do it, to reach more into myself to have reached that potential. It's just trying to be better than I was the day before."
Coming into such intense competition on the world stage, Carrington said she still battles with nerves and fears - but has found ways to deal with it. Before a race, she faces down the fear by looking down the lane into the water and feeling grateful for the opportunity to compete.
However, the chance to compete at the Olympics is the ultimate privilege, she said.
"Growing up to be an Olympian was the epitome of who you wanted to be. They represented so many good values and so I think for me something I thought I'd never be able to do.
"It's amazing. I guess I'm just proud of where I've come from."
Lisa Carrington trains at Lake Pupuke on Auckland's North Shore. Photo: Photosport
In the wake of her Tokyo success the question was whether the 32 year old would continue.
The indications are that she will be back having posted on social media in October "the next adventure awaits...Paris 2024".
Auckland based, Dame Lisa never forgets where it all started - her hometown of Ōhope in Bay of Plenty. After the Olympics she was keen to return there to celebrate with her fiancé, Michael Buck, family, friends and most importantly, her dog, Colin, a cavoodle puppy, who came into her life during the first year of Covid-19.
She supports and coaches young paddlers at her home club in Ōhope, and works with Canoe Racing New Zealand to help the sport grow.
She has won 10 world championship gold medals, including seven successive K1 200 metres event titles and has won the Sportswoman of the Year title at the Halberg Awards four times, including in 2016 when she also took out the supreme award.
She also beat out shot putter Dame Valerie Adams and golfer Lydia Ko to be named the Sportswoman of the Decade at the revamped 2021 Halberg Awards.
Also this year Dame Lisa was named the most influential Māori Sports Personality of the past 30 years in the 'Māori Sports Awards 30 in 30' show.
She has once again been nominated for Sportswoman of the Year in the Halberg Awards which cover the past two years of achievement following the postponement of last year's event.