Maxine Blomquist (born 13 March 1956) is a former New Zealand netball international. Between 1974 and 1982, she made 31 senior appearances for

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. She was a member of the New Zealand teams that won a gold medal at the

1979 World Netball Championships The 1979 World Netball Championships was the fifth edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It was held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, featuring 19 teams. Australia, New Zealand and Trin ...

and a bronze medal at the

1975 World Netball Championships The 1975 World Netball Championships was the fourth edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It took place from 22 August to 4 September and was held in Auckland, New Zealand. It featured 11 teams ...

. Her sister, Annette Heffernan, their cousin, Shirley Langrope, and her two nieces,

Kate Heffernan Kate Alexandra Heffernan (born 7 October 1999) is a New Zealand netball international and former cricketer. She represented the New Zealand national netball team at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the 2023 Netball World Cup. She captained Ne ...

and

Georgia Heffernan Georgia Heffernan is a New Zealand netball international. Since 2018, she has played for Southern Steel. Her mother, Annette Heffernan, her aunt, Maxine Blomquist, her sister, Kate Heffernan and a cousin, Shirley Langrope, are all New Zeal ...

, have all played international netball for New Zealand. Maxine and Annette were the first set of sisters to play international netball for New Zealand. Kate and Georgia were the third set.

Early life and family

Blomquist is originally from

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

. She is the sister of Annette Heffernan and a cousin of Shirley Langrope, who are also former New Zealand netball internationals. Annette and Maxine were the first set of sisters to play international netball for New Zealand. Her two nieces,

and

are also both New Zealand netball internationals. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, they became the third set.

Netball career

New Zealand

Between 1974 and 1982, Blomquist made 31 senior appearances for

. On 9 November 1974, she made her senior debut against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

during an away tour. Her cousin Shirley Langrope captained New Zealand on this tour and again when they were teammates at the

. Blomquist was known as a defender and she regularly played in all three defensive positions. Her versatility and height also saw used as a goal attack. She was also a member of the New Zealand teams that won a gold medal at the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blomquist, Maxine 1956 births Living people New Zealand netball players New Zealand international netball players 1975 World Netball Championships players 1979 World Netball Championships players Heffernan family Sportspeople from the Canterbury Region 20th-century New Zealand sportswomen