Wānaka’s Ellesse Mote Andrews has been made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours for services to cycling.

Ellesse (Waitaha, Kāti Māmoe, Kāi Tahu) is a world champion cyclist and four-time Olympic medallist. She became the second New Zealander to win three medals in a single Olympic Games, and now ranks as New Zealand’s sixth most successful Olympian. 

Ellesse grew up in Luggate and attended Wānaka Primary School and Te Kura o Tititea Mount Aspiring College (MAC, where her mother Angela taught music) until her final two years when she attended St Peter’s in Cambridge.

“It was the right move for me and my family, but I was always gutted not to be a MAC survivor of all seven years,” Ellesse told the Wānaka App.

Ellesse said she loved growing up in Wānaka, where she was “exposed to so many amazing sporting opportunities and amazing people along the way”. 

“I also loved my creative side and have so many amazing people in the community who played a part in influencing that side of my life too. Coming back to Wānaka feels like I’m coming home - the most special memories and very special people.”

Ellesse set a new world youth record at the 2017 Junior Track Cycling World Championships and was recognised with the Halberg Emerging Talent Award. She went on to win three gold medals and a silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games, and two golds and a silver medal at the 2024 Olympics. 

Ellesse Andrews in action. PHOTO: Cycling NZ

In 2023, Ellesse became the first New Zealand female sprinter to claim a world title, winning gold at the World Championships. She was recognised as Cycling New Zealand Road and Track’s Female Track Cyclist of the Year in 2022 and 2023, and has been a top-five finalist in the High Performance Sport New Zealand Sportswoman of the Year category for three years running. 

“It is so special to be receiving this honour,” Ellesse told the Wānaka App this week. 

“But I think it’s important to acknowledge the amount of people who have influenced me in my cycling journey. I want to say thank you to all of them too as I would not be where I am today without them.”

Through her role in the Athlete Leaders Group, Ellesse has been an important advocate for her teammates, and a key driver of applying tikanga Māori to Cycling New Zealand’s programme. 

She has given back to the community through speaking engagements, mental health awareness campaigns and voluntary roles at community events, including Cambridge’s Cycling Festival.

Ellesse (centre) with her parents Angela and Jon at the World Champs in Italy, 2017. PHOTO: Supplied

Sport and recreation minister Mark Mitchell said the 2025 Honours List recognises “the outstanding depth of talent, dedication, and leadership across New Zealand’s sport sector”.

“My congratulations to all our sportspeople honoured this year. Your contributions continue to shape New Zealand’s sporting legacy and inspire us all,” he said.