ANNUAL REPORT 2019 – 2020 CONTENTS President’s Report 3 Chair and CEO Report 4 Strategy Report 7 Our People 9 Community Report 11 Commercial and Events Report 15 High Performance Report 17 Awards and Records 23 Obituaries 27 Financial Summary 29 Board Report 49 Partners and Sponsors 51 Affiliated Clubs 2019 - 2020 53 Note to readers: Every effort has been made to identify and verify athletes, officials, competitions and performances. Any omissions or errors are unintentional. ANNUAL REPORT 2019–20 2 Cameron Graves on his way to winning the 2019 New Zealand Cover image: Lisa Adams competes at the 2020 Jennian Homes New Zealand Track and Cross Country Championships senior men’s race. Photo: Michael Dawson Field Championships. Photo: Alisha Lovrich PRESIDENT’S CHAIR AND REPORT CEO REPORT Kia ora Athletics New Zealand whanau. What a year it has been for everyone so I integral member of the Athletics NZ Board On behalf of the Board of Athletics NZ, it 21 self-nominated clubs representing the thought I would firstly address the elephant in my second tenure of office. is a pleasure to present the 133rd Annual diversity of clubs around the country. Each in the room, namely Covid-19. This Report for the year ending 31 March 2020. club has a three-year action plan and we are pandemic has turned everything in our This board is extremely well-led, We achieved substantial progress during pleased to be able to provide support normal day-to-day lives upside down, accomplished and interested in all facets that year against our key priorities in the towards achieving their agreed goals. perhaps nowhere more so than in sport. of our sport. The board has met Covid-19 2017-2022 Strategic Plan. Our team is Progress has been positive, with many head on, been flexible in their thinking and focused on continuing to enhance support clubs making changes to the structure of We were lucky that our New Zealand Track worked closely with the operational arm of for members, including club capability, club nights and focusing on building coach and Field Championships were able to be our sport to ensure athletics continues to be development of coaches and officials, capacity. held during the first weekend in March a tier-one sport. Much thanks must go to supporting a range of outstanding 2020. There were some excellent Athletics NZ CEO Peter Pfitzinger for his competitions and leading a successful high In early 2020, Kirsten Hellier ONZM was performances with many of our athletes strong empathetic leadership and performance programme. appointed Coach Development Leader, intending to then head across the Tasman to management of his staff to ensure we overseeing the development of the coaching compete at the Australian Track and Field achieve our strategic objectives in this very Cameron Taylor, Thanks to strong relationships with our key pathway from grassroots to high Joan Merrilees, President Championships. Unfortunately, this did not trying time. Chair stakeholders – including Sport NZ and High performance. We are delighted to have happen due to the country being put in Performance Sport NZ (HPSNZ) – and the Kirsten in this role as a lifelong participant, Level 4 lockdown just prior to these As part of our strategic direction, we are support of our commercial and funding Olympian and Halberg Award-winning championships. endeavouring to ensure we have a strong partners, operations for the financial year coach. Kirsten travelled extensively in the strategy and marketing plan around our resulted in a surplus. We are committed first few months in her role, meeting with The late-March lockdown also meant that events and make sure our calendar is a to sustainable financial management and coaches and gathering insights for we were unable to hold all the regional good fit for all facets of our sport, without ensuring that surpluses in one year are development of the Athletics NZ Coaching secondary schools events, as well as the spreading the load too thinly. This means used to enhance support for clubs, coaches, Plan. We are excited by the opportunity we North and South Island meetings. High good delivery of our core fundamental skills officials and individual members in future have to continue to invest in and develop performance athletes and coaches at club level and progressive skill years. More recently, this approach allowed our coaches. needed to revisit their plans for 2020 and development to performance levels in all Athletics NZ to respond to the constantly think creatively, which I have no doubt facets of our sport. Quality events help evolving environment due to Covid-19. Our Accredited Coach Membership is happened from some of the training footage develop our athletes, coaches, officials and moving into its third year and we are I saw during lockdown. Finally, the 2020 administrators to continue to the level they Community Programmes pleased with the response from veteran Olympic and Paralympic Games were want to perform at, whether this is local, and newer coaches, with an increase from postponed until 2021, which then has national or international. Our 11 regional athletics centres are vital 84 to 147 accredited coaches over the past meant a complete re-jig of training plans. Peter Pfitzinger, to the nationwide delivery of athletics, and year. In August we launched the Community I am excited that well-known Chief Executive over the past year we have focused on Coach Membership, which is open to Kiwis are certainly resilient and I am sure international coach Kirsten Hellier (ONZM, enhancing communication and genuine anyone who coaches within our sport, there will be many creative plans to ensure OLY) has joined Athletics NZ as Coach consultation. Many innovative ideas including Foundation Programme coaches, our athletes will be ready for Tokyo in 2021. Development Leader. Kirsten has so much originate in the centres and we are club coaches and parent coaches. This Our population has done an amazing job to experience to draw upon and I believe it is committed to working collaboratively to enhances our ability to communicate with, help contain the spread of Covid-19 to the exciting for the future of our sport, for the ensure the ongoing success of our sport. upskill and influence our coaching extent that, when writing this report, we are education of our coaches and for the population, as well as ensuring that coaches fortunate to be experiencing a successful networking of our coaches. It has been an We are pleased with the continued are aware of the importance and winter season, although with some ongoing challenge for our coach integration of children’s activities and would requirements to ensure we are all providing adjustments. education system to meet the needs of like to thank the Youth Advisory Group for a safe environment for our young athletes. today’s coaches and athletes head on and their insights and support. We are delighted This membership category matches current Prior to lockdown, I was privileged to be an to keep them in our sport. As the previous to be able to ensure the ongoing legacy child safety best practice and is free for official for the South Island Colgate Games. President Ian Babe stated, I also believe we of the Colgate Games and inter-provincial anyone coaching Athletics NZ members. This was a new experience for me and was are getting better at merging the science of athletics events. The annual Colgate Games, a busy three days. However, it was a great our extraordinarily complex sport with the hosted by Canterbury and Taranaki this year, The past year saw record progress in opportunity to see our future champions in extremely complex art of coaching. continues to be a highlight in the calendar recruitment, education and support of action. for more than 2,000 young athletes aged officials. We trialled a grassroots training Finally, I would like to acknowledge the seven to 14 years. We are very grateful programme with local organising I have been involved in athletics for many many hardworking volunteers we have in to Colgate for 42 years of support, one of committees to encourage new officials, years and it is an absolute privilege to be our sport. I would encourage you to pursue the longest sporting sponsorships in New targeting the North Island Colgate Games President of Athletics New Zealand. During your pathways to the level you desire, if you Zealand. and New Zealand Secondary Schools my first year in the position, I have been are unsure always ask someone who has Athletics Association (NZSSAA) Track and able to gain a greater insight into the role been around awhile. Take care, stay safe and The three-year club development project Field Championships. Collectively, over 80 that governance plays in keeping our sport remember we are making history – and we has now completed its second year thanks new officials were recruited and trained via relevant to all our members. I look forward are winning. to investment from Sport NZ, including this initiative. to expanding my knowledge and being an Ngā mihi – Kind regards ANNUAL REPORT 2019–20 4 CHAIR AND CEO REPORT In July 2019, Ngā Puna Wai in Christchurch Our new partnership with Sky Sport and the Acknowledgements and Thanks hosted the first ever Technical Officials NZ Sports Collective enables livestreaming Education and Certification System (TOECS) of our key events on the Sky Sport NEXT We mourn the loss of many key figures who Level II course in New Zealand, with 15 platform, with both the Jennian Homes passed away over the past year, including officials nominated by their centres to take Track and Field Championships and Sir Dame Yvette Corlett (nee Williams) and our part.