To mark the 1994 Winter Olympics the Reserve Bank issued a collectors’ $5 coin that was struck by British Royal Mint.
Designed by Maurice Conley the silver coin features a racing slalom skier. At the previous Winter Oympics in 1992, 20-year-old New Zealander Annelise Coberger won a silver medal for slalom skiing at Albertville in France.
There were great hopes for the 1994 team which included Colberger and the ice racing team who were the current world champions. However there were no podium finishers that year or for many years afterwards. This medal drought was broken 26 years later when Zoi Sadowski-Synnott won bronze in the women's big air at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.
Despite competing since 1952, as of 2024, New Zealand had only won medals at three Winter games, in 1992, 2018 and 2022.