Hammer thrower Julia Ratcliffe's journey to Commonwealth Games gold paved by supportive dad

Julia Ratcliffe could’ve been many things growing up – a musician, an academic, a Commonwealth Games gold medallist.

Lucky for New Zealand, she eventually became the latter thanks largely to the unwavering support of her father who has also become her self-taught coach.

In fact, it was Dave Ratcliffe that got his daughter into hammer throwing back when she was still competing in wide range of sports.

“I remember dad bringing home a hammer and just laying it in my room, so I said, ‘what’s that?’

“He’s just driven everything, he has.”

Watch the full story above to see the special partnership the pair developed that took them from a small concrete pad in Waikato to one of sport’s biggest stages.