1 January: Broadcasts from the Chatham Islands and the New Zealand mainland are watched worldwide as New Zealand, by virtue of time zone, kicks off the world-wide millennium celebrations.
Mark Hutchinson wins his third national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:24:58 on 29 October in Auckland, while Melissa Moon claims her first in the women's championship (2:45:42).
The Tall Blacks lost all five pool games at the Olympic Men's tournament, then beat Angola in the classification game to finish 11th out of 12 teams.
The Tall Ferns lost all five pool games at the Olympic Women's tournament, then beat Senegal in the classification game to finish 11th out of 12 teams.
New Zealand sent 151 athletes to the 2000 Summer Olympics held in Sydney, Australia. The medal tally of 1 gold and 3 bronze medals was considered very disappointing and sparked a review of high-performance sports training programmes.
The Auckland Warriors finished 13th of 14 teams in the NRL. The club was under severe financial pressure until purchased by Eric Watson and rebranded as the New Zealand Warriors.