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Yachting has been recognised in the 2017 New Zealand Sport and Recreation Awards, after being named as finalists in two categories.
(Peter Burling and Blair Tuke dominated the 49er class at the Rio Olympics. Photo: Sailing Energy / World Sailing)
Rio gold medallists Peter Burling and Blair Tuke are finalists in the high performance campaign category alongside Paralympic swimmer Sophie Pascoe and Olympic shot putter Tom Walsh.
The pair won every major regatta they entered (28 regattas) following their silver at the 2012 London Olympics and won the gold in the 49er class in Rio by a mammoth 43 points - the largest margin of victory of any sailing class in the Olympics since the modern scoring system was introduced in 1968. They were alson named Team of the Year at the recent Halberg Awards.
The Aon 2016 Youth Sailing World Championships, hosted by Torbay in December, is one of four finalists in the event excellence category. New Zealand ran a highly successful regatta with only seven months' notice following Oman's late decision to withdraw as hosts.
"We're delighted to receive two nominations," Yachting New Zealand chief executive David Abercrombie said. "It's a reflection of the quality of what the organisation is doing from youth sailing to developing professional yachties and the steps that go in between.
"Peter and Blair's nomination is a culmination of eight years of hard work. And the nomination for the Aon Youth Sailing World Championships is recognition of the great work the event team, led by Peter Dawson, put together. To bring it to New Zealand and execute a high quality regatta justified that hard work."
(The Aon 2016 Youth Sailing World Championships were a resounding success. Photo: Sailing Energy / World Sailing)
Chair of the judging panel Peter Dale said the number and range of outstanding nominations in every category pointed to the high-quality work being carried out across the sector.
“Nominations range from high performance campaigns which delivered great results at Rio to those showing the positive impact sport can have on social issues in communities,” Dale said. “In total, they exemplify just what sport and active recreation can do for our national wellbeing.”
The New Zealand Sport and Recreation Awards, now in their 10th year, are organised by Sport New Zealand and the winners will be announced at an awards dinner in Auckland on May 29. The judging panel comprised Peter Dale (chair), Sir John Wells, Selwyn Maister, Jennifer Gill and Geoff Barry.
The finalists by category (in alphabetical order) are:
Commercial Partnership:
Badminton New Zealand and OnePure
Paralympics New Zealand and ACC NZ, Cadbury and Sanford Ltd
Sport Northland and ASB Partnership
Community Impact:
Activating the Wairoa Community – Sport Hawke’s Bay
The Northeast Pathways project – Hutt City Council
The Pasifika Aotearoa Cup, Women’s Rugby Festival – NZ Rugby
Event Excellence:
2016 World Bowls Championships – Bowls NZ
Aon 2016 Youth Sailing World Championships – Yachting NZ
Crankworx Rotorua – Sport Bay of Plenty
Te Wānanga o Aotearoa Waka Ama Sprint National Championships – Waka Ama NZ
High Performance Campaign:
Peter Burling and Blair Tuke 49er class, 2016 Rio Olympic Games Campaign – Yachting NZ
Sophie Pascoe, 2016 Rio Paralympic Games Campaign – Paralympics NZ
Tom Walsh, 2016 Olympic Games Campaign – Athletics NZ
Innovation Excellence:
Basketball NZ Enables ‘Glory League’ and Gamifies Basketball – Basketball NZ
Community Playgroups – NZ Rugby League
Northland Rugby, Blue Card – NZ Rugby
