The following lists events that happened during 1998 in New Zealand.
Population Estimated population as of 31 December: 3,829,200. Increase since 31 December 1997: 26,500 (0.70%). Males per 100 Females: 96.8.
Incumbents
Regal and viceregal Head of State - Elizabeth II Governor-General - The Rt Hon. Sir Michael Hardie Boys GNZM, GCMG, QSOThe Rt Hon Sir Michael Hardie Boys, GNZM, GCMG, QSO gg.govt.nz. Retrieved 10 April 2012
Government The 45th New Zealand Parliament continued, with the Fourth National Government in power.
Speaker of the House - Doug Kidd Prime Minister - Jenny Shipley Deputy Prime Minister - Winston Peters then Wyatt Creech Minister of Finance - Bill Birch Minister of Foreign Affairs - Don McKinnon Chief Justice — Sir Thomas Eichelbaum
Opposition leaders
See: :Category:Parliament of New Zealand, :New Zealand elections
National - Prime Minister Jenny Shipley Act - Richard Prebble New Zealand First - Winston Peters United New Zealand - Peter Dunne Labour - Helen Clark (Leader of the Opposition) The Alliance - Jim Anderton and Sandra Lee
Main centre leaders Mayor of Auckland – Les Mills then Christine Fletcher Mayor of Hamilton – Margaret Evans then Russ Rimmington Mayor of Wellington – Mark Blumsky Mayor of Christchurch – Vicki Buck then Garry Moore Mayor of Dunedin – Sukhi Turner
Events
2 May – By-election in Taranaki-King Country after the former Prime Minister Jim Bolger resigned. Shane Ardern retained the seat for National. 14 August – Prime Minister Jenny Shipley sacks Winston Peters from Cabinet after a dispute over the privatisation of Wellington International Airport. Peters subsequently cancels New Zealand First's coalition agreement with National. 22 October – Magnum Photo Supplies Ltd v Viko New Zealand Ltd, (1 NZLR 395) case is decided. 27-30 October – Heavy rainfall and flooding in western New Zealand costs over $2 million in insurance payouts. New Zealand appoints a resident ambassador to Argentina and establishes an embassy in Buenos Aires. Until 2016, this year was New Zealand's warmest year on record.
Arts and literature Michael King wins the Robert Burns Fellowship. Montana New Zealand Book Awards: Montana Medal: Harry Orsman (ed.), Dictionary of New Zealand English Deutz Medal: Maurice Gee, Live Bodies Reader's Choice: Malcolm McKinnon(ed.), New Zealand Historical Atlas First Book Awards Fiction: Catherine Chidgey, In a fishbone church Poetry: Kapka Kassabova, All Roads Lead to the Sea Non-Fiction: Genevieve Noser, Olives: The new passion
See 1998 in art, 1998 in literature, :Category:1998 books
Music
New Zealand Music Awards Winners are shown first with nominees underneath. were: Album of the Year: Bic Runga - Drive Salmonella Dub - Calming of the Drunken Monkey Rob Guest - Standing Ovation The Stereobus - Stereobus Greg Johnson - Chinese Whispers Single of the Year: Bic Runga - Sway Shihad - Home Again The Feelers - Pressure Man Darcy Clay - Jesus I Was Evil Moizna - Just Another Day Best Male Vocalist: Jon Toogood – (Shihad) Greg Johnson (Greg Johnson Set) Booga Beazley (Head Like A Hole) Best Female Vocalist: Bic Runga Sulata Annie Crummer Best Group: Shihad The Mutton Birds Dam Native Most Promising Male Vocalist: Darcy Clay Dave Yetton (The Stereobus) James Reid (The Feelers) Most Promising Female Vocalist: Alesha Siosiua (Miozna) Maisey Rika (St Josephs Maori Girls College) Jordan Reyne Most Promising Group: Moizna The Feelers The Stereobus International Achievement: OMC The Mutton Birds Garageland Best Video: Mark Hurley - Home Again (Shihad) Joe Lonie - Pressure Man (The Feelers) Wayne Conway - Suddenly Strange (Bic Runga) Best Producer: Malcolm Welsford - Pressure Man (The Feelers) Chris Sinclair - Kia Koe (Sulata) Debbie Harwood & Stephen Small - So This Is Love Best Engineer: Simon Sheridan - Sway (Bic Runga) Chris Sinclair - Kia Koe (Sulata) Malcolm Welsford - Pressure Man (The Feelers) Best Jazz Album: the New Loungehead - Came a Weird Way Trip to the Moon - Jazz Hop Sustenance - Food For Thought Best Classical Album: Daniel Poynton - You Hit Him, He Cry Out Alexander Ivashkin - Shostakovich Cello Concertos Keith Lewis And NZ Chamber Orchestra - Opera Kings Gods And Mortals Best Country Album: Kylie Harris - Fancy Best Folk Album: Paul Ubana Jones - Blessings and Burdens T&D Bigger Band - Hillingdon AJ Bell - Ragwort Touch Best Gospel Album: Parachute Band - You Alone Dennis Marsh - Faith Invasion Band - You Call My Name Best Mana Maori Album: Te Matapihi – Te Matapihi Maori Volcanics - Kia Ora Dam Native - Kaupapa Driven Rhymes Uplifted Best Mana Reo Album: St Josephs Maori Girls College - E Hine The Willie Matthews Quartet - A Treasury of Maori Songs Nga Kura O Hananah - Nga Kura O Hananah Best Children's Album: Kids TV - Sing Something Simple Tessa Grigg & Brian Ringrose - Where Are You Going Colin Jules Riding - Kids Time With Jules Riding Best Songwriter: Bic Runga - Sway Greg Johnson - Liberty Jordan Luck - Change Your Mind Best Cover: Wayne Conway - Drive (Bic Runga) Crispin Schuberth - Came A Weird Way (The New Loungehead) A Penman & Ross (Finnart) - Calming of the Drunken Monkey (Salmonella Dub) New Zealand Radio Programmer Award: John Diver - Channel Z (Wellington) Melanie Wise - Q92FM (Queenstown) Kaye Glamuzina - National Radio
See: 1998 in music
Performing arts
Benny Award presented by the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand to Dame Malvina Major ONZ GNZM DBE.
Radio and television 16 March: British children's television series Teletubbies premieres on TV3. 30 August: Prime Television New Zealand begins transmission.
See: 1998 in New Zealand television, 1998 in television, List of TVNZ television programming, :Category:Television in New Zealand, TV3 (New Zealand), :Category:New Zealand television shows, Public broadcasting in New Zealand
Film Memory and Desire Saving Grace
See: :Category:1998 film awards, 1998 in film, List of New Zealand feature films, Cinema of New Zealand, :Category:1998 films
Internet
See: NZ Internet History
Sport See: 1998 in sports, :Category:1998 in sports
Athletics Mark Hutchinson wins his second national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:24:51 on 25 October in Auckland while Bernardine Portenski claims her second in the women's championship (2:44:52)
Basketball the NBL was won by the Nelson Giants
Commonwealth Games
Total 8 6 20 34
Cricket Various Tours, New Zealand cricket team The Shell Trophy for 1998-99 was won by Canterbury, with Northern Districts runners-up.
Golf New Zealand Open :Category:New Zealand golfers
Horse racing
Harness racing New Zealand Trotting Cup: Christian Cullen Auckland Trotting Cup: Christian CullenAuckland Trotting cup at hrnz.co.nz
Thoroughbred racing
Netball Silver Ferns National Bank Cup Netball World Championships
Olympic Games
New Zealand sends a team of eight competitors in six sports. Total 0 0 0 0
Paralympic Games
New Zealand sends a team of five competitors in one sport. Total 4 1 1 6
Rugby league
The Auckland Warriors finished 15th out of 20 teams in the first season of the National Rugby League premiership.NRL 1998 Competition Ladder Auckland won the National Provincial Competition by defeating Canterbury 44-8 while Waikato ended the season holding the Rugby League Cup. 24 April, New Zealand defeated Australia 22-16 9 October, New Zealand lost to Australia 12-30 31 October, New Zealand defeated Great Britain 22-16 7 November, New Zealand defeated Great Britain 36-16 14 November, New Zealand drew with Great Britain 23-all
Rugby union :Category:Rugby union in New Zealand, Super 12 - was won by the Canterbury Crusaders who defeated the Auckland Blues 20–13 in the final. Season summary National Provincial Championship - won by Otago Bledisloe Cup - won 3-0 by Australia Tri Nations Series - won by South Africa. New Zealand came last with no wins and only 2 bonus points Ranfurly Shield - Waikato held the shield all season, beating Poverty Bay 121–0, King Country 76–0, Bay of Plenty 25–18, Auckland 24–23, Southland 95–7, Nth Harbour 39–22, Northland 63–22, and Canterbury 29-23
Shooting Ballinger Belt – Mike Collings (Te Puke)
Soccer The second National Summer Soccer League was won by Napier City Rovers The New Zealand national soccer team won the OFC Nations Cup tournament held in Australia, beating the host nation 2–0 in the final. The Chatham Cup is won by Central United who beat Dunedin Technical 5–0 in the final.Chatham Cup records, nzsoccer.com New Zealand U-16 team coached by Wynton Rufer travels to unofficial U-16 World Cup in France to coincide with 1998 FIFA World Cup. Achieve mixed results (0-3 v Italy, 0-2 v Cameroon, 1-1 v Austria, 0-1 v USA, 0-1 v Israel, 1-0 v Norway)
Births
January–March 6 January – Eleanor Epke, squash player 11 January – Thomas Mikaele, rugby league player 25 January – Sione Havili, rugby union player 4 February – Tevita Mafileo, rugby union player 5 February – Tai Wynyard, basketballer 6 February – Hayden Phillips, field hockey player 11 February – Ben Sears, cricketer 20 February Emma Cumming, racing cyclist Nicole Fujita, model and tarento 24 February – Will Jordan, rugby union player 3 March – Sione Asi, rugby union player 4 March – Tom Christie, rugby union player 28 March – James Fouché, racing cyclist
April–June 2 April – Sam Fischli, rugby union player 5 April – Michaela Drummond, racing cyclist 9 April – James McGarry, association footballer 13 April – Paige Satchell, association footballer 17 April – Vilimoni Koroi, rugby union player 18 April – Liana Dance, water polo player 21 April – Jackson Wells, freestyle skier 29 April – Fraser Sheat, cricketer 30 April – Liam Wood, association footballer 4 May – Waimana Riedlinger-Kapa, rugby union player 7 May – Jess Watkin, cricketer 12 May – Campbell Stewart, racing cyclist 18 May – Brianna Fruean, environmental activist 28 May – Logan Rogerson, association footballer 16 June – Tanielu Tele’a, rugby union player 19 June Ali Galyer, swimmer Harry Plummer, rugby union player
July–September 4 July – Olivia Ray, racing cyclist 6 July – Ma'ava Ave, cricketer 9 July – Mikayla Harvey, racing cyclist 12 July – Hoskins Sotutu, rugby union player 15 July – Nathan Smith, cricketer 18 July – Ella Harris, racing cyclist 1 August – Rosie Cheng, tennis player 2 August – Ricky Jackson, rugby union player 7 August – Jesse Arthars, rugby league player 22 August Leica Guv, Thoroughbred racehorse Adam Pompey, rugby league player 28 August Morgan Harper, rugby league player Sarah Morton, association footballer 30 August – Ngane Punivai, rugby union player 3 September – Bailyn Sullivan, rugby union player 13 September – Evelina Afoa, swimmer 20 September – Isaiah Papali'i, rugby league player 23 September – Bradley Slater, rugby union player
October–December 20 October – Tasmyn Benny, boxer 29 October Laghlan McWhannell, rugby union player Felix Murray, cricketer 7 November – Rosemary Mair, cricketer 17 November – Courtney McGregor, artistic gymnast 19 November – Thomas Sexton, racing cyclist 29 November – Xavier Numia, rugby union player 4 December – Just An Excuse, Standardbred racehorse 11 December – Rakai Tait, snowboarder 12 December – Elizabeth Anton, association footballer 18 December – Jade Lewis, tennis player 22 December – Ben Beecroft, cricketer 24 December – Nikita Howarth, swimmer
Undated Rupena Parkinson, rugby union player Henry Williams, actor Indy Yelich, poet and singer-songwriter
Deaths
January–March 12 January – Neil Williams, water polo player (born 1918) 14 January – Leonard Atkinson, public servant (born 1906) 27 January – Gavin Downie, politician (born 1924) 14 February – Peter Jacobson, poet (born 1925) 20 February – Ces Blazey, rugby union and athletics administrator (born 1909) 8 March – Kuini Te Tau, Ngāi Tahu kaumātua, welfare worker, community leader (born 1899)