Richie McCaw’s wife is Gemma McCaw, the former Black Sticks hockey player born Gemma Flynn. They married in Wānaka on 14 January 2017, have three daughters, Charlotte, Grace and Ella Mae, and have lived near Wānaka since leaving Christchurch, which they announced in December 2024.
The couple are back in the headlines in 2026. In February McCaw was inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, in March the family’s old Fendalton home sold at auction for more than $3.6 million, and in September Gemma told the story of how she left the All Blacks captain “on seen” the first time he messaged her. Here is the whole family story, plus what McCaw does now, as of November 2026.
| Full name | Richard Hugh McCaw |
| Born | 31 December 1980, Oamaru (45 as of November 2026) |
| Grew up | His parents’ farm in South Canterbury |
| Wife | Gemma McCaw, née Flynn (married 14 January 2017) |
| Children | Three daughters: Charlotte (2018), Grace (2021) and Ella Mae (2023) |
| Lives | Hāwea Flat, near Wānaka (move from Christchurch announced December 2024) |
| All Blacks | 148 tests, 110 as captain, Rugby World Cup winner 2011 and 2015 |
| Life after rugby | Commercial helicopter pilot and businessman |
| Top honour | Order of New Zealand (2016) |
Who is Gemma McCaw?
Gemma McCaw, born Gemma Michelle Flynn on 2 May 1990 in Tauranga, is a former Black Sticks hockey star. She played 254 games for the Black Sticks, scored 72 goals and went to three Olympics, Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016, before ending her international career in June 2020.
She went to Tauranga Girls’ College and earned a Bachelor of Sport and Exercise from Massey University in 2017. With the Black Sticks she won Commonwealth Games silver in Delhi in 2010 and bronze in Glasgow in 2014, and the team finished fourth at both the London and Rio Olympics.
Her retirement came in two steps. She stepped away after Rio, came back in November 2019 with Tokyo in mind, then called time when the Games were postponed by Covid. “No one could’ve imagined a global pandemic getting in the way of that dream, but there are things beyond our control,” she wrote on Instagram, in a message quoted by hockey’s world body, the FIH. She has also been an ambassador for the Breast Cancer Foundation NZ and Sport New Zealand.
| Name | Gemma Michelle McCaw (née Flynn) |
| Born | 2 May 1990, Tauranga (36 as of November 2026) |
| Sport | Hockey, striker and midfielder |
| Black Sticks | 254 caps, 72 goals |
| Olympics | 2008, 2012 and 2016 (fourth in 2012 and 2016) |
| Commonwealth Games | Silver 2010, bronze 2014 |
| Retired | June 2020 |
How did Richie and Gemma McCaw meet?
Richie and Gemma McCaw met at a community sporting event in Hamilton, when her nana asked her to get McCaw to sign a rugby ball for a terminally ill 10-year-old boy. He messaged her just before the London 2012 Olympics, and she left it unanswered because nothing was going to get in the way of her Games.
Gemma told the Between Two Beers podcast in September 2026 that she still credits her grandmother. “I truly believe that my nana brought us together,” she said. McCaw messaged again after she missed a penalty in a shoot-out late in the Olympic tournament, and she still left him waiting a few more weeks before replying.
Their first date was a coffee, and it ended up on the front page of Women’s Day the following week. She was 22 and he was 10 years older and one of the most recognised people in the country, which she called “quite unnerving”. Reports that they were dating first surfaced in 2013, and she moved to Christchurch in 2014.
When did Richie McCaw get married?
Richie McCaw married Gemma Flynn on Saturday 14 January 2017 at the Olive Grove in Wānaka. They had become engaged in January 2016, a couple of months after he retired from rugby, and the wedding was held under heavy security on private property.
Newstalk ZB reported on the day that guests began arriving from about 1pm, and that two of McCaw’s best-known teammates, Dan Carter and Ali Williams, missed it because they were in France with their club Racing 92. As of September 2026 the couple had been married for nine years.
Richie McCaw’s children and their names
Richie and Gemma McCaw have three daughters. Charlotte Rose was born in December 2018, Grace Isabelle on 30 May 2021 and Ella Mae on 3 April 2023. They have no sons. Gemma announced each birth on Instagram.
| Daughter | Born | Announcement |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte Rose McCaw | December 2018 | First child, announced in December 2018 |
| Grace Isabelle McCaw | 30 May 2021 | “Charlotte is excited to be a big sister,” Gemma wrote |
| Ella Mae McCaw | 3 April 2023 | Born weighing 7lb 10oz, making them “a family of 5” |
Gemma has said motherhood changed her. “I’ve had to be okay with the person I am, without Gemma the hockey player or the sports person,” she said on the podcast.
Where does Richie McCaw live now?
Richie McCaw lives near Wānaka with Gemma and their three daughters. In December 2024 the family announced they were leaving Christchurch, their home for 10 years, for a new house they had built on a 12,670 square metre riverside site at Hāwea Flat. McCaw said he planned to “move in for Christmas”.
Announcing the move on Instagram, Gemma wrote that Christchurch was “where we welcomed our three beautiful girls into the world”, the NZ Herald reported. The Hāwea Flat home is a large single-storey house of schist stone and cedar. “The finished house is amazing,” McCaw said in a post thanking the builders.
Their Christchurch house went in 2026. The four-bedroom architect-designed home on Jacksons Road in Fendalton sold at auction on 19 March for more than $3.6 million, OneRoof reported, after the couple bought it in 2021 for $3.25 million. By then the family had been in Wānaka for more than a year.
What is Richie McCaw doing now?
Richie McCaw became a helicopter pilot after rugby. He gained a commercial helicopter licence, and when he retired he joined Christchurch Helicopters as a director and shareholder. He flew rescue and reconnaissance missions after the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake and has taken tourists on scenic flights, alongside a range of other business directorships.
He chose that path before he finished playing. “I have been all about the rugby, whereas flying gave me something new to think about, a new group of people,” he said in a 2016 interview, about a year after the 2015 World Cup final. He has other interests too. The Royal New Zealand Air Force made him an honorary Wing Commander in 2016, and he has raced the Kathmandu Coast to Coast four times, including in the tandem section with former teammate Rob Nicol.
The honours have kept coming. In February 2026 he and Dame Valerie Adams were inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame at the Halberg Awards.
Richie McCaw’s All Blacks record and when he retired
Richie McCaw played 148 tests for the All Blacks between 2001 and 2015 and captained the team in 110 of them, still the world record for tests as captain. New Zealand won 131 of his 148 tests, about 88.5 per cent, and he led them to Rugby World Cup titles in 2011 and 2015.
He announced his retirement on 19 November 2015, a few weeks after the 2015 World Cup final, when he was 34. His 148 caps were the world record from August 2015 until Wales lock Alun Wyn Jones passed him in October 2020.
| Test caps | 148 |
| Tests as captain | 110 (world record) |
| Test wins | 131 (88.5 per cent) |
| Rugby World Cups won | 2011 and 2015 |
| World Rugby Player of the Year | Three times |
| Other honours | World Rugby Hall of Fame (2019), World Rugby Player of the Decade 2011–2020, NZ Sports Hall of Fame (2026) |
| Retired | Announced 19 November 2015 |
Did Richie McCaw turn down a knighthood?
Yes. Richie McCaw turned down a possible knighthood in the 2012 New Year Honours, so he is not “Sir Richie”. Prime Minister John Key said in December 2011 that McCaw felt it did not seem right during his playing career. In the 2016 New Year Honours he became a Member of the Order of New Zealand instead.
As a member of the order, McCaw represented the order at the coronation of King Charles III in 2023.
Richie McCaw’s family, parents and where he grew up
Richie McCaw grew up on his parents’ farm in South Canterbury, where his great-great-grandfather settled in the Hakataramea Valley in 1893. His father took over the family farm and his mother was a teacher at Kurow. He has one sister, Joanna. He boarded at Otago Boys’ High School from 1994 and became head boy.
After school he studied at Lincoln University and completed all but two papers of a Bachelor of Agricultural Science before rugby took over. He is 187cm tall, and his playing weight was listed at 107kg.
Richie McCaw’s book and the Chasing Great documentary
Richie McCaw’s autobiography is The Real McCaw, written with Greg McGee. The film people search for is Chasing Great, a 2016 documentary about him that opened at number one at the New Zealand box office and set a record for a New Zealand documentary’s opening day.
The New Zealand Film Commission reported that Chasing Great took $89,186 on 97 screens on its first day, ahead of Bad Moms. The film was built on access to McCaw himself, family archives and footage that had not been seen before.
Frequently asked questions
How old is Richie McCaw?
He is 45 as of November 2026. He was born on 31 December 1980 in Oamaru and turns 46 on New Year’s Eve.
How old is Richie McCaw's wife?
Gemma McCaw was born on 2 May 1990, so she is 36 as of November 2026. She is nine years younger than Richie.
Is Richie McCaw still married?
Yes. He and Gemma married in January 2017, and in September 2026 she spoke on a podcast about their nine years of marriage and their three daughters.
How many kids does Richie McCaw have?
Three daughters: Charlotte, born in December 2018, Grace, born in May 2021, and Ella Mae, born in April 2023.
What was Gemma McCaw's maiden name?
Flynn. She played for the Black Sticks as Gemma Flynn and later under her married name, Gemma McCaw.
How tall is Richie McCaw?
He is 187cm, about 6 feet 2 inches.
