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The New Zealand Olympic Committee is to amalgamate staff and resources in Auckland as part of its commitment to New Zealand sports and athletes.
The move for the head office from Wellington will take place over a period of eight months with Secretary General Kereyn Smith set to take up residence in Auckland in June.
Smith says the move will facilitate better communication, stronger working relationships and more robust planning within the Olympic and Commonwealth sports community.
“With High Performance Sport New Zealand based in Auckland along with around 60% of our member sports, the decision is prudent,” she said. “We found those sports whose plans were developed early and were well-integrated with those of the New Zealand Olympic Committee performed better at London,” Smith added. “The move to Auckland is one way we can facilitate this process and ensure our athletes achieve their goals at Olympic Games.”
The organisation is also set to strengthen resources with three new positions in athlete and sport-facing roles advertised this coming week.
“The demands of high performance sport continue to increase,” said Smith. “We need to be able to deliver to sports and athletes when it counts and we need more people on board to achieve this.”
The organisation will be based at Olympic House in the Auckland suburb of Parnell, before moving to new, permanent premises in 2014.
The Wellington office will close in late June with some Wellington-based staff taking up temporary residence at Sport New Zealand in Wellington during the transition.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee has operated out of two locations since 2006 when the Marketing and Communications department moved from Wellington to Auckland.
Photo: Getty images
