Olympic hero Lisa Carrington got a little more than she had bargained for during her live chat with The AM Show on Thursday morning.
Speaking from her hotel room in MIQ, the five-time Olympic champion was welcomed with a live message of congratulations from All Blacks great Richie McCaw, before her fiance Michael Buck and dog Colin joined in on the surprise.
"Outstanding to watch," McCaw said of Carrington's achievement in adding three gold medals in Tokyo, taking her overall tally to five.
"It made us all proud as Kiwis to see how everyone's done in Tokyo but obviously you lead the way.
"Congratulations… enjoy everything that comes with it."
Carrington - currently on day two of her 14-day quarantine in Christchurch after returning from Japan - called the well wishes from the two-time World Cup winner "incredibly humbling".
But there were more surprises to come for New Zealand's most successful Olympian, as two of her nearest and dearest gatecrashed the interview.
"That's so cool," she reacted, as Buck carried their canine child on to set.
"I thought while I was away 'why did I get a dog?' because I miss him so much. I shouldn't have got one."
Carrington admitted the confines of her hotel room were quite a comedown from the highs of Japan but says she's been savouring the opportunity to put her feet up and take a well-earned break from physical activity, after an arduous Olympic campaign.
"I'm not exercising in here," Carrington laughs.
"I'm just watching some Netflix. Bucky sent me some puzzles yesterday. Some magazines, some life admin that I haven't got around to while I was away for the last seven weeks.
"There's a bit to keep busy but it's just a nice time to just take a moment and have no expectations of how I'm going to feel or what I need to do for the day. So it's good."
Fiance Buck has been holding down the first while Carrington has been in Japan, looking after Colin and chipping away at the pair's wedding plans.
But at the top of the agenda when Carrington completes her time in MIQ is a return home for some classic Kiwi beach therapy.
"We'll probably head down to Ohope, where Lisa is from, and hangout at the beach and probably just continue what she's doing now with a bit of nothing, which will be nice."
