After training this morning I dropped Eyad off at his immigration lawyer’s office in Queen Street. Further up Queen Street, close to the turn into Karangahape Road, I passed the White House strip club and the memories came flooding back. You see the owner of the White House is Brian LeGros, a terrific guy and, in every sense of the word, in all his dealing with me, a gentleman.

I met Brian before he owned the White House. In those days he lived in Wellington and owned the Liks strip club. It was actually Swimming New Zealand (SNZ) who introduced me to Brian. You see back in those days SNZ ran a “Meet your local strip club owner” service.

No, I’m joking. The truth is while I was waiting in the SNZ office for a meeting with the CEO, David Meyer I noticed a small advertisement for Brian’s Liks strip club on the back page of the SNZ monthly magazine. The purpose of my meeting was to ask Meyer whether there was any possibility of financial assistance for Toni Jeffs’ preparation for the World Short Course Championships and the Olympic Games. Meyer couldn’t help.

That afternoon I told Toni there was no help available from SNZ but I had noticed the Liks’ advertisement in their magazine. Perhaps the owner had an interest in swimming and would consider helping Toni. After two or three phone calls Brian agreed to meet Toni and me in his office at the club.

The meeting was not at all what my prejudice expected. We were shown into a very conservative looking office. Brian was sitting behind a standard oak desk. A lovely black Labrador called Boss greeted us with the warmth typical of the breed. I explained to Brian what we needed and why we had ended up in his office. It turned out Brian knew very little about swimming. He had placed the advertisement through an agency.

“How much money do you need?” he asked.

I told him the full amount. “Okay” he said, “Heather, get my cheque book. Since your phone call I’ve checked you out and we will sponsor you through to the Olympic Games.” And that’s what happened.

Do you want to know the truly remarkable thing about that? Not once did Brian ask us for anything in return. His financial help came with no conditions. He was happy to be part of a team that won a bronze medal at the World Cup Finals and went on to prepare for the Olympic Games. The fact Toni struggled at the Olympics was not her fault or Brian’s. They did their bit. Sadly, I screwed up her preparation. Brian never displayed any disappointment or censure for that mistake. He might not have known much about swimming but he certainly knew about people.

After Brian agreed to help I asked him if there was anything I could do to promote his club. Brian said, no he was not looking for publicity. I asked, if I got in touch with Television New Zealand would he agree to an interview. He agreed to that.

I rang Keith Quinn at Television New Zealand and asked if he was interested in the story. Keith said yes. He would have a camera crew at Brian’s club the next morning. The interviews seemed to go well. Brian explained that SNZ had declined our request but he was in a position to help and enjoyed supporting the underdog. One of Brian’s strippers was asked what she thought of the sponsorship. She answered brilliantly. All the girls had become swimming fans. And Toni, dressed in her best SNZ uniform, struck just the right note of appreciation.

Television New Zealand must have liked it as well. On the 6.00pm News Brian’s sponsorship was the first item of sport’s news. SNZ were not quite as happy. Half an hour after the broadcast I got a call from CEO, David Meyer. He ordered Toni and me to be in his office at 10.00 the next morning. A meeting had been called to consider whether we should be charged with bringing the sport into disrepute.

I told Toni not to bother going. I would take the meeting on my own. It was a fairly big affair with David Meyer and several members of the SNZ Board. Meyer explained that SNZ could not have swimmers promoting strip clubs. Swimming was a family sport and demanded protection from that sort of exploitation. Before deciding on our punishment, did I have anything to say, he asked.

I took the SNZ magazine out of my bag and put it in the centre of the table. The back page Liks’ advertisement stood out like a beacon. “It was SNZ who gave me the idea.” I said, “You took Brian’s money to promote his club before I did. The only difference is you got $50 and I got a lot more.” The meeting ended at that point. The Board of SNZ would get back to me with their decision. They never did.

The sponsorship continued for eighteen months. Brian’s word was his bond. Every penny was paid and nothing was ever asked in return. My swim school did provide free swim lessons to the children of Brian’s strippers. I used to enjoy the irony of a prominent conservative MP’s wife sitting beside the pool talking with Brian’s strippers about schools and bringing up children. If only she had known.

The sponsorship achieved fame far beyond anything Brian or I ever imagined. Taxi drivers told Brian they frequently got Japanese fishermen asking to be taken to the strip club that sponsored the Olympic swimmer. The main sports story in the huge American paper “USA Today” was Liks’ sponsorship. I’m betting it’s the only time New Zealand swimming has achieved that status. And Air New Zealand upgraded my SNZ economy ticket to first class for the flight to Barcelona for the Olympic Games.

So thank you Brian. Thank you for the support. Thank you for the fun. Thank you for the memories. And thank you for being a bloody good mate.