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08 Mar 2010
SKY to Show Highlights of Vancouver Paralympic Games
The Winter Olympics have now ended and now the world’s eyes will be on Vancouver again for the Paralympic Winter Games. The athletes, including a strong New Zealand team, compete in 20 events from five sports and SKY will have highlights of all the action from alpine skiing to sledge hockey.

Paralympic Highlights:

07 Mar 2010
Results - 2010 Canterbury Track & Field Championships
The Canterbury Track & Field Championships were held at QEII Park, Christchurch from the 5th - 7th March 2010.

A summary of the AWD results are below. For a complete set of results visit www.athleticscanterbury.org.nz.

06 Mar 2010
Results - Para Cycling Track National Championship
The Para Cycling Track National Championships were held at the ILT Velodrome, Invercargill from the 1st - 6th March 2010.

A summary of the AWD results are below. For a complete set of results visit www.bikenz.org.nz.

05 Mar 2010
World Record Sparks National Age Group & Disabled Swimming Championships
North Shore swimmer Rebecca Dubber set a world record on the penultimate day of the Mayfair Pools New Zealand Age Group & Disabled Swimming Championships in Christchurch tonight.

The 16 year old clocked 11:21.66 in the 800m freestyle which is unofficially well inside the previous record of 11:36.43 for S7 classification swimmers, with the record still to be ratified.

That was not the only highlight of the fourth day, with star of the championships, Sophia Batchelor adding a further two national age group records to her burgeoning list.

Batchelor, who swims for the Aqua Gym club in Christchurch under coach Leanne Speechly, took her tally to six with new records in the 50m backstroke and 100m butterfly for girls 14 years.

She was the only swimmer under the 30 second barrier in winning the 50m backstroke in 29.81 which was half a second inside her own national mark.

Batchelor also clocked 1:02.60 to win the 100m butterfly, edging her previous record by 25/100ths of a second.

The fastest in the 100m butterfly was Ashburton’s Josie Kydd who won the 15 years honours in 1:01.85.

For a complete set of results visit www.swimmingnz.org.nz.


04 Mar 2010
Tandem Tumbles Record
Nearly 200 riders have flocked to the deep south for the RaboPlus Age Group Track National Championship. While the weather is cold and wet outside, inside the ILT Velodrome the heat was on in the first day of the four day event.

It was Phillipa Gray and Sonia Waddell (Waikato Bay of Plenty), a tandem paracycling pair who stole the show. They rode a personal best time in the Paracycling 1000m Time Trial, exceeding all expectations and smashing the New Zealand record.

“We were aiming to ride sub 1.15 minutes, hoping to do 1.14 minutes, but to ride under 1.13 minutes was phenomenal,” Waddell said.

Their time of 1:12.892 was nearly a second faster than the New Zealand record held by Jayne Parsons and Annaliisa Farrell of Canterbury.

“We weren’t even aware of what the record was, so to smash it is a great feeling.”

Sonia Waddell, best known for her rowing career, steers the tandem, while Gray, who is visually impaired sits behind her. Gray has only nine percent vision due to Retinitis Pigmentosa, a genetic disease.

These riders are showing remarkable promise, each relatively new to the sport of cycling. Waddell took to the bike a year ago, with Gray only taking up cycling a short four months ago. They first rode together in September last year, although they estimate they have only spent the equivalent of two weeks training on the bike together.

While this pair was the only tandem cycle entered in the event, they still were required to earn their gold medal. Due to the relatively small fields in paracycling, (often there is only one rider per class), medals are allocated based on how close the rider’s time was to that of the world record. Waddell and Gray’s ride was within the required five percent threshold in order to be awarded a gold medal.

Canterbury teenager Elizabeth Steel was the other star of the show, taking gold medals in both the under 19 Women’s 2000m Individual Pursuit and the Under 19 Women’s 6km Scratch Race.

Dylan Kennett (Mid South Canterbury) clocked a new national record in the Under 17 Boys Time Trial.

The RaboPlus Age Group National Track Championships run until Saturday.


02 Mar 2010
New Season of Attitude Starts - March 14
The first programme for the 2010 season of Attitude screens on Sunday March 14 on TV One at 8.30am and features a full programme on Adam Hall and Peter Williams. Attitude have been filming with Adam since 2008 and Peter during 2009, including a trip to Winter Park last year to see them both in situ and in full training mode. The programme reflects their journey and dedication to get to Vancouver for the Winter Paralympics.

In addition, TV One's Sunday programme will screen a condensed version of the programme the same night.


28 Feb 2010
Triathlon Confirms National Championships Open To Paratriathletes
Triathlon in New Zealand is growing at a faster rate than any other sport, now that growth is set to include Paratriathletes with the very first National Championships set down for Wellington on March 13.

Along with all other triathlon age group categories in standard distance racing, the Contact National Triathlon Championships in Wellington will now also govern selection for athletes with a disability to the 2010 World Championships in Hungary this September.

Sport Development Director for Tri NZ Brendon Downey says the move is a logical one for the sport and one that Tri NZ looks forward to.

“The Paralympics is one of the bigger sporting events held in the world and it makes perfect sense for Triathlon to embrace athletes with a disability. Triathlon is a sport for life and does not discriminate based on age, background or ability, it is only right then that we should cater for those athletes with a disability who choose to swim, bike and run.

“We have worked closely with both the ITU Paratriathlon Commission and Paralympics NZ to set the necessary rules and criteria to allow Paratriathletes to compete in our events safely and comfortably. Further to that we look forward to taking a team away to the World Championships each year with the view to bringing yet more medals back home in the Paratriathlon events.”

Once all criteria is met and athletes are appropriately classified they will race against others in the same category to earn spots in Budapest, provided all eligibility criteria is met and the athlete finishes within four hours over the standard distance course.

While Paratriathlon events are specifically for athletes with a physical or visual disability, they will compete alongside their able bodied age group competitors on the same course over the same distance but vie for World Championship selection against others with similar abilities.

The International Triathlon Union (ITU) has hosted Paratriathlon World Championships since 1996 and now has over 800 athletes competing from 43 countries. It is a stated goal of the ITU to get Paratriathlon into the Paralympics for 2016; NZ currently has a representative on that working committee

Last year two Paratriathletes represented New Zealand at the World Championships in the Gold Coast, both athletes coming home with medals. Miriam Jenkins (gold) and Rob Matthews (silver) both proudly wore the silver fern as official members of the New Zealand team.

Paratriathletes undergo an assessment of function, prior to a national event, where they are classified and a competition class allocated to them which they compete in against others in the same class.

This is vital for those considering entry to the event in that they must be classified prior to arrival in Wellington or indeed for any future Paratriathlon event. Athletes wishing to seek classification should do so by contacting Brendon Downey on the contacts provided below.

There are six categories/classes that paratriathletes compete under, please refer to the following link for details and video footage:
http://archive.triathlon.org/?call=TWpVMg==&keep=sh


22 Feb 2010
NZ Paralympian Adam Hall Goes Five For Five at Well's
For the fifth time in five years of racing at the Wells Fargo Ski Cup World Invitational, Paralympian Adam Hall has secured a Gold medal.

Hall is the first athlete to achieve five gold medals in this hotly contested event, where professional, world-class disabled ski racers go head-to-head for the prize money.

The best news for Hall is that his results here could well be indicative of how he will perform at the upcoming Paralympics.

With up to eight nations training at Winter Park with the National Sports Center for the Disabled (NSCD) and more than 20 athletes from these countries planning to compete at the upcoming Vancouver 2010 Paralympics, the event is a good gauge of Hall’s potential to bring home the Gold for New Zealand.

“It’s an honour and a privilege to be a part of this programme and to help build the profile of the National Sports Centre for the Disabled here in Winter Park,” said Hall.

“This event is not about winning for me, though it’s always good to take a win and even more of an accomplishment to take five of five.”

“The NSCD has helped changed thousands of peoples’ lives and continues to do so.”

The Wells Fargo Ski Cup World Invitational is the only race of its kind on the Disabled Circuit, taking place every February in Winter Park, Colorado in the US.

This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the NSCD, currently the biggest and most respected disabled programme of its kind in the world.

The weekend is focused on raising awareness of the programme and most importantly raising money for the NSCD. The success has been huge this year, with up to a quarter million USD being raised.


11 Feb 2010
Paralympic Winter Games Coverage On ParalympicSport.TV
ParalympicSport.TV, the International Paralympic Committee's (IPC) Internet TV channel, will be offering the most comprehensive live coverage ever of the Paralympic Winter Games.

ParalympicSport.TV will broadcast from the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games everyday from 12-21 March 2010. All Paralympic sports will be covered in the programming, either live or delayed. This coverage will also be made available as Video on Demand (VOD) after the events on www.ParalympicSport.TV.

For a sneak preview of what will be available on the IPC's Internet TV channel, ParalympicSport.TV has just released its first trailer promoting the coverage of the Vancouver Paralympics on www.youtube.com/paralympicsporttv.

The Paralympic Games and the Paralympic Movement have also been fully integrated into Facebook. Users can simply become a fan of ParalympicSport.TV on www.facebook.com and receive daily updates with all the happenings in Vancouver and the daily competition schedule. It is a fantastic way to stay informed throughout the duration of the Winter Games!

For more information on the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, please visit www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games


25 Jan 2010
Variety Gold Heart Scholarships
Variety – The Children’s Charity wants to help Kiwi kids reach their lifelong dreams in education, music, art, and sport through its Gold Heart Scholarship programme.

Applications open on February 1 for the programme which provides talented Kiwi kids who are sick, disabled or disadvantaged with $5,000 and matches them with a mentor to assist them to reach their goals.

“Over the past three years, we have funded 50 scholarships for Kiwi kids in fields as varied as swimming, piano and psychology – regardless of the field or the adversity they have overcome, the common theme with these children is their outstanding talent and determination to reach their dreams,” said Ms Lorraine Taylor, CEO of Variety.

“One of the unique aspects of the Scholarship is that each recipient is assigned a leading professional or celebrity mentor to encourage and support them throughout the year. Mentors this year include cricketer Shane Bond, Olympic swimmers Liz Coster, Helen Norfolk and Dean Kent, and former NZ champion athlete turned TV presenter Jayne Kiely.

The Variety Gold Heart Scholarship fund makes available a maximum of $5,000 per annum for up to three years to help children with special needs fulfill their dreams. This could include assisting with tuition fees, personal development, coaching, and the purchase of training equipment, travel or accommodation.

Applications open on February 1 and close on March 31.
For more information, phone (09) 520 4111 or visit www.variety.org.nz.


23 Jan 2009
ParaFed Otago Launches New Website
ParaFed Otago has launched a new website and organisation logo.

The objectives of ParaFed Otago are:

- To promote a healthy lifestyle through sport and recreation
- To create awareness of disability sport in the community
- To develop junior programmes
- To coordinate with existing sports and recreation groups clubs to support the integration of people with disabilities

Be sure to visit www.parafedotago.co.nz for more information.




21 Jan 2010
IPC Athletics World Championships get major Government boost
Exactly one year out from the start of the IPC (International Paralympic Committee) Athletics World Championships to be held in Christchurch, the New Zealand Government has made a grant of $400,000 to support the event.

Announced by the Prime Minister, John Key, during an inspection of the QE II facilities today, the event will be the largest outside the Paralympics and the first time it has been held outside Europe.

Fiona Pickering. CEO of Paralympics New Zealand, said that as well as the fantastic support from the Government and Christchurch City Council, she was delighted that the Prime Minister had accepted the position of Patron of the championships, which will run from January 21 - 30, 2011.

“With the championships expected to have an economic impact in excess of $75 million for New Zealand and $12 million for Christchurch, the support we have received from both the New Zealand Government and the Christchurch City Council is critical in making this a truly world class event,” she said.

In excess of 1300 athletes from 70 countries plus 900 officials, coaches, managers and 150 international technical officials will be in attendance.

“Christchurch has a proven track record for hosting a wide array of successful international events and this event will further establish the city as an international sporting destination,” she said.

Mayor of Christchurch Bob Parker said that it is a great privilege for Christchurch to be the first city outside Europe to host the event.

“We understand the importance on the world stage of not only hosting such an events, but ensuring that it becomes a great event. It is Christchurch’s ambition and determination to make this the greatest IPC Athletics World Championships ever held,” he said.

Officials from UK Athletics have already visited the city, Australian athletes are currently training her, Canadian officials are visiting next week and teams from the United States, Brazil and France are visiting in the near future. Also as part of preparation for the championships work has already started on building a new eight-lane, 400m training track as well as facilities for field events such as long jump, high jump and discus/shot/javelin throwing positions.

Xavier Gonzalez, chief executive of the IPC, said that personally he found it a great challenge to pick between the two cities that were seeking to host the event, Barcelona and Christchurch.

“Barcelona is my home town so you can see my difficulty, but after just two days in the city I know we have made the right choice.

Paralympic sport is about breaking boundaries, opening up new frontiers, so it is appropriate that we move out of comforts of Europe and come down to this beautiful city.

“The legacy to be left here in Christchurch will bring increased participation from people with a disability into sport for the country. Additionally, the Paralympics movement will leave a lasting impression in New Zealand for the entire world to see,” he said.

Also participating in the inspection were the Minister of Economic Development, Gerry Brownlee, Helen Murphy, IPC Athletics Manager, Paralympics New Zealand chairman, Mark Copeland and Paralympian Jessica Hamill.

Background

This is expected to bring to Christchurch
• 1300 athletes from 70 countries
• 900 officials, coaches, managers
• 150 international technical officials

What does this mean for New Zealand?
• It will have an economic impact to New Zealand in excess of $72 million.

What does this mean for Christchurch?
• 17,000 room nights accommodation and meals
• 20 buses moving 12 hours per day
• Around 300 volunteers working each day,
• This event will have the effect of creating in excess of 150 fulltime job equivalents in Christchurch.
• It will have an economic impact for Canterbury of approximately $12 million.

This event will include
• Track and field events for athletes with disabilities such as spinal cord injury and cerebral palsy, as well as amputees and the visually impaired.
• It will be staged at the QE11 Stadium and a second temporary training track will be required.


17 Jan 2010
Adam Hall Takes Gold at Abtenau World Cup
Adam Hall finishes two weeks of grueling World Cup Competition atop the podium, taking a gold in slalom at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Alpine Skiing World Cup races in Abtenau, Austria.

Hall was unwell for most of his time in Austria and in earlier races was not performing up to his own expectations, landing in fourth place at two races and seventh in another.

“This trip has had its ups and downs,” said Hall. “I have been sick for most of it and have been lacking energy.”

“I was really happy to make a comeback and win today.”

“It has been two years since I won my last world cup. This win has really helped to build my confidence and renew my faith in myself and my ability to achieve my goal of gold at the upcoming Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver.”

“I won by two tenths of a second,” said Hall. “It’s going to be close in Vancouver and well worth watching .”

Hall’s coach, Hiro Taniguchi, expressed frustration at Hall’s earlier results saying, “I expected better results from the beginning of the series but am pleased that as the series continued his results stepped up and in the end he was the fastest.”

“Once again Adam was able to show he can be the best in the world. He made a great come back today and finished showing his world class talent.”

“Our goal in the remaining time leading up to the Paralympic Games will be to gain better control of the ups and downs so that Adam peaks at the right time.”

Hall is headed back to Winter Park, Colorado to continue his training and build up towards his bid for a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Paralympics.

His parting words, “I have 2 months of hard work ahead of me.”


05 Jan 2010
Westpac Halberg Award Finalists Announced
Outstanding performances by New Zealand sportsmen and women at world championship level last year have been reflected in the finalists selected for the 2009 Westpac Halberg Awards.

Rowing dominates the list with five finalists - senior and lightweight single scull world champions Mahe Drysdale and Duncan Grant, the pair of Eric Murray and Hamish Bond and the lightweight double scull crew of Storm Uru and Peter Taylor plus Richard Tonks, who coached two of the world champions. Cycling, with women’s world individual pursuit champion Alison Shanks, world BMX Olympic Class champion Sarah Walker and head coach Tim Carswell, has three finalists while athletics, with world shot put champion Valerie Vili and coach Kirsten Hellier, has two.

Other World Champions to be recognised by the Halberg Awards Voting Academy were swimmer Sophie Pascoe and the women’s 420 sailing crew of Alexandra Maloney and Bianca Barbarich-Bacher. The heroic efforts of the All Whites in beating Bahrain to be one of the last teams to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Finals in South Africa have been rewarded with Team and Coach (Ricki Herbert) selections.

There are 13 finalists named in the three categories from which the supreme Halberg Award winner will be chosen - Sportsman (5), Sportswoman (4), Sports Team (4).

The awards organised each year by the Halberg Trust, salute outstanding achievement by New Zealanders in sport at home and overseas over the 12-month calendar period. All category winners and the Halberg Award recipient, widely regarded as the ultimate accolade for sporting excellence by a New Zealander, will be announced at a glittering black tie dinner at the SKY CITY Convention Centre in Auckland on Thursday, 4th February 2010.

Voting for the Westpac Halberg Awards is carried out by a Voting Academy comprising 29 media representatives, coaches and athletes who have excelled at the highest level.

Finalists:

Sportsman of the Year: Scott Dixon (Motorsport), Mahe Drysdale (Rowing), Duncan Grant (Rowing), Richie McCaw (Rugby), Daniel Vettori (Cricket)

Sportswoman of the Year: Sophie Pascoe (Swimming), Alison Shanks (Cycling), Valerie Vili (Athletics), Sarah Walker (Cycling)

Sports Team of the Year: All Whites (Soccer), Men's Pair (Rowing), Men's Lightweight Double Scull (Rowing), Women's 420 (Sailing)

Coach of the Year: Richard Tonks (Rowing), Tim Carswell (Cycling), Ricki Herbert (Soccer), Kirsten Hellier (Athletics)
 

Last Updated | Monday, 08 March 2010

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