Kia ora tātou,
For many of our NSO partners the last few months has been an intense period of world championship and Olympic or Paralympic qualifying events. Congratulations to all those involved in campaigns that have met the targets you set or made the progress you were aspiring to.
As always, the reality is that not everyone achieved the results they targeted and will be coping, alongside their athletes and people, with the inevitable disappointment that comes with that. Our people are supporting those who need it at this time.
Our Performance Partnerships team is currently working with all our NSOs who have Paris 2024 campaigns on the debriefs of recent events to get crystal clear about what is needed to convert their campaigns into podium success in Paris, and how we can support that.
The next few months will be a tense time for many athletes and sports to navigate as they come to terms with qualification or non-qualification, then selection or non-selection for Paris. It’s a priority for us to work with them to support the athletes and those who work closest with them through this process.
In this HPSNZ update we reflect in more depth on two very different Paris campaigns. We talk to Canoe Racing New Zealand GM Performance, Nathan Luce, about the recent world championship performance that delivered three gold medals including a first time win for the K4 women’s crew, which adds to the incredible legacy of success for this sport.
We also talk to newly crowned Junior World Speed Climbing Champion Julian David and coach Rob Moore about Julian’s quest to become the first Kiwi to qualify for the Olympic Games in his chosen sport.
Another important milestone this month has been the resumption of our Prime Minister’s Scholarship Ceremonies, to celebrate the 2023 Scholarship recipients and the investment in education and training for their future careers through this programme.
As our story in this HSPNZ Update outlines, this programme is unique to New Zealand and is a critical part of our investment in athletes as people.
Ngā mihi nui
Steve
Celebrating our PM’s Scholarship recipients
Athletes and others from across the high performance sport sector have come together in the first two of three Prime Minister’s Scholarship ceremonies over the past week.
Ceremonies in Christchurch and Auckland celebrated the athletes, coaches, officials and support staff who received Prime Minister’s Scholarships in 2023.
They were the first ceremonies held since 2019 due to a COVID-19 induced hiatus.
MP for Christchurch East, Hon. Poto Williams, standing in for Minister for Sport and Recreation Grant Robertson, presented the scholarship certificates at the Christchurch event last week, with Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni doing the honours in Auckland last night.
Healthy Women in Performance Sport strategy takes shape
While the Healthy Women in Performance Sport (HWiPS) team, led by Dr Sue Robson, continues its round of athlete engagement and feedback, they have been busy developing the draft strategy which will underpin the programme for the next five years.
The strategy aims to take up the challenge of identifying the gaps and opportunities across three areas – Environments (safety, voice, choice), Knowledge (resource development, skills training, research) and Evaluation (baselines, progress, priorities).
Circle of Support exciting foundation of Performance Pathways programme
A new and exciting part of the Regional Performance Pathways programme is the focus on athletes’ Circle of Support which provides an important framework for pre high performance athletes.
Using the Raise My Game system developed by former Black Sticks Olympian Suzie Muirhead, the growth planning conversation includes the athletes’ Circle of Support, part of a holistic approach that prioritises their wellbeing.
Often an athlete’s Circle of Support is a multi-layered network of people, all of whom have an important role to play as the athlete navigates their sport, professional and personal goals coherently to prepare for future transitions.
A tight and connected Circle of Support can play a critical role in preparing athletes for transition into high performance sport.
Canoe Racing aiming high for Paris 2024
The golden glow of success from the recent Canoe Racing World Championships in Duisburg, Germany, has resulted in New Zealand gaining four women’s places and one Para canoe spot for Paris 2024, a performance CRNZ General Manager of Performance, Nathan Luce described as stellar.
Nathan acknowledges it was their goal to qualify a K4 boat to get them ahead with their Paris preparations and the women’s team has done that.
But it’s not job done yet, according to Nathan.
Scaling new heights
Speed Climbing, one of the newest sports in the Olympic programme and a part of HPSNZ’s aspirational sports portfolio, is looking to create a first with a young Kiwi making great leaps towards qualifying for Paris 2024.
National Speed Climbing champion, 18 year old Julian David, has recently added the prestigious Junior (U20) World Championship title to his name with a hard fought, gritty win against his American finals opponent.
The win has given Julian and Climbing NZ High Performance Director and Speed Programme Head Coach Rob Moore, the confidence to eye up the upcoming Oceania championship in Melbourne in late November. A win will see the young Kiwi climber gain the region’s qualifying male speed climbing spot in Paris.
Applications open for Prime Minister’s Scholarship Internships
Following a second successful year of Prime Minister’s Scholarship Internships in 2023, applications will open between 1 and 30 October for the third group of recipients.
The programme provides athletes with the opportunity to gain flexible work experience that will assist their transition to real world workplaces.
Internship recipient from 2023, rower Kristen Froude shared her work experience story as she puts her PM’s Athlete Scholarship funded environmental science degree into practice with environmental management start-up company, Element Environment.
Meanwhile this video, features some of the participants and their internship employers, telling the story of the internship programme.
Further information about the Prime Minister’s Scholarship Internships and how to apply can be found here.
