Tri NZ Media Release…
• Category finalists announced for resurrected Tri NZ Awards
• Winners to be announced at Auckland Gala Dinner on April 27
• Supreme Awards named in honour of triathlon legends Erin Baker and Hamish Carter
Finalists across 13 elite, age group and community categories revealed
Auckland (April 19, 2024) – The finalists for the resurrected Tri NZ Awards have been unveiled.
The winners of each of the 13 categories celebrating elite, age group and community excellence will be announced at the Tri NZ Gala Dinner at the AUT Millennium, the national governing body’s North Shore HQ, on April 27.
Eight-time world champion Erin Baker and Athens 2024 Olympic Games gold medalist Hamish Carter have lent their names to the supreme awards.
Finalists for the ‘Erin Baker NZ Female Triathlete of the Year’ are Nicole van der Kaay, Brea Roderick and Ainsley Thorpe while Dylan McCullough, Tayler Reid and Hayden Wilde have been nominated for the ‘Hamish Carter NZ Male Triathlete of the Year’.
Tri NZ will also recognise New Zealand’s finest elite Ironman, T100 and Challenge athletes, short and long course excellence during the past year’s Tri NZ Suzuki Series and World Triathlon Age Group Championships in Ibiza and Pontevedra, in addition to awarding male and female Para Athletes and Technical Official of the Year.
One lucky participant from the recently completed Tri NZ Suzuki Series will also drive away from the awards in a brand new Suzuki Swift with the annual prize draw set to ignite the gala celebration.
An independent panel comprising Shanelle Barrett, Victoria Murray-Orr and Benjamin Eitelberg was convened to judge the category shortlists and select winners.
Former elite athlete Barrett, awarded the NZ Order of Merit for Services to triathlon last June, is one of the sport’s leading event providers. Murray-Orr is Challenge Family’s Head of Global Marketing & Communications and a Tri NZ Board member while Eitelberg is the Chair of the Tri NZ Age Group Selection Committee.
Tri NZ CEO Pete De Wet is delighted the Tri NZ Awards are back on the calendar after last being staged in Wellington in the 2000s. There has been radio silence on acts of athletic swim, bike and run achievement and outstanding community service since, save for passing mention in the 2017 annual report.
A host of community, coaching and youth awards are set to be added in 2025. They include:
• Club of the Year
• Event of the Year
• Volunteer of the Year
• Professional Coach of the Year
• Age Grouper Coach of the Year
• Female Cross Triathlete of the Year
• Male Cross Triathlete of the Year
• People’s Choice Award
• Most Promising Female Junior (U19)
• Most Promising Male Junior (U19)
Earlier on April 27, the Tri NZ Annual General Meeting will be held at AUT Millennium, as well as separate Club and Event Provider forums as the NSO continues planning for the 2024-25 summer.
Tri NZ Awards – 2024 Finalists
AGE GROUP
Tri NZ Female Short Course Age Grouper of the Year – Finalists
Joy Baker
Angie Keen
Emma Payne
Tri NZ Male Short Course Age Grouper of the Year – Finalists
Edward Fuller
Blake Miller
Liam Miller
Tri NZ Female Long Distance Age Grouper of the Year – Finalists
Kate Brown
Hannah Maher
Vanessa Murray
Tri NZ Male Long Distance Age Grouper of the Year – Finalists
Michael Glynn
Peter Jackson
Liam Miller
Tri NZ Technical Official of the Year – Finalists
Cathi Davey
Claire Hannan
ELITE
Tri NZ Female Para Athlete of the Year
Tri NZ Male Para Athlete of the Year
Tri NZ Long Distance Female Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Hannah Berry
Rebecca Clarke
Amelia Watkinson
Tri NZ Long Distance Male Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Braden Currie
Mike Phillips
Kyle Smith
Tri NZ U23 Female Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Oliva Cummings
Hannah Howell
Brea Roderick
Tri NZ U23 Male Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Lachlan Haycock
Dylan McCullough
Saxon Morgan
Erin Baker NZ Female Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Nicole van der Kaay
Brea Roderick
Ainsley Thorpe
Hamish Carter NZ Male Triathlete of the Year – Finalists
Dylan McCullough
Tayler Reid
Hayden Wilde
