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I'd like to wish the entire New Zealand Olympic team, and especially the sailing team, the very best in Japan.
It has not always been an easy ride and it's also going to be challenging once on the ground, given all the restrictions in place, but one thing I know about Kiwi sailors is they are resilient.
Yachting New Zealand is confident we have done everything possible to support them given the difficult circumstances.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the high performance team led by Ian Stewart as well as the Yachting New Zealand board, Olympic selectors and Olympic committee, and High Performance Sport New Zealand for the support they have given us and work they have done to this point. It has not been easy, especially as these will be the most complex and expensive Olympic Games for us as an organisation.
The restrictions on travel have meant we've had to look at different ways to prepare our sailors and it will be interesting to see whether some of the approaches we have taken will pay dividends. In many respects, these Olympics are a little like those of yesteryear when our athletes turned up not really know how they stacked up against the rest of the world.
One who has a better idea on how he is tracking is Finn sailor Josh Junior and we were thrilled to see he was named recently as the Kāpura Sportsman of the Year at the recent Wellington sports awards.
We've received great support from High Performance Sport New Zealand, Sport New Zealand and the New Zealand Olympic Committee over the last 18 months to ensure our sailors will be ready once they hit the start line.
Unfortunately, friends and family will not be able to travel to the Games to support their loved ones. I will be watching a lot of the action down at The Cloud in Auckland and I'd love to see you there also.
This venue will be open to the public from 2pm each day so come down and enjoy the action. The sailing is scheduled to get under way about 3pm (NZ time) each day so pop down after school or work and come and say hi.
The medal races take place from July 31 to August 4 and we're really hopeful of some New Zealand success. Find the sailing schedule here.
We've been very lucky at Yachting New Zealand that our sponsors and partners have remained loyal over what has been a really difficult time. I can imagine clubs have been going through an equally tough time and it's why we should all support the sponsors we have, and other companies who support the wider sporting network.
We're thrilled to announce we've added HRV and Fuel Caltex to the offerings in the Yachting New Zealand member card and app. Purchases from these two companies will directly support your club and Yachting New Zealand, as well as providing access to great products.
We're really encouraged by the membership numbers that are emerging through the collection of affiliation data. Most clubs have sent through their affiliation information, and we thank you for that.
That information is really important for us to better understand who is participating in sailing and boating and how we tailor our programmes and services to benefit clubs and their members.
If you have any questions about that, please contact your local regional development manager (formerly known as regional support officer). The RDMs are presently helping clubs get ready for the new season and are always available for assistance.
National sport development director Raynor Haagh and I have been visiting a number of regions around the country to share Yachting New Zealand's proposed new strategy. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive around the direction we are going and we will continue to develop this over the coming weeks before sharing the final document with you some time around September.
In simple terms, the strategy focuses on five key areas: stronger clubs, success, Yachting New Zealand, increased diversity and the environment.
Raynor and I will next be heading to Napier and then the Bay of Islands and Whangarei but reach out to your RDM to find out when we'll be in your area because we'd love to see you.
That's enough from me right now. Enjoy the Olympics and see you out on the water.
- Pic: Alex Maloney, Molly Meech, Peter Burling, Blair Tuke, Micah Wilkinson, Sam Meech and Erica Dawson make up the majority of the New Zealand competing in Tokyo (absent: Paul Snow-Hansen, Dan Willcox, Josh Junior). Photo: Getty Images.
