15 JANUARY 2021

Here’s what’s happening in rowing news

Rowing NZ is the national sports organisation (NSO) for all rowing in New Zealand, as recognised by Sport New Zealand, High Performance Sport New Zealand (HPSNZ), the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) and the New Zealand Paralympic Committee (NZPC), representing the interests of school, university, club, masters, para and indoor rowing. The primary objective of Rowing NZ is to foster and promote the sport of rowing in New Zealand in all its forms and classifications.

Need to talk to us? Contact us on info@rowingnz.kiwi or 07 823 4587.

Keep up to date with Rowing NZ's latest news on our website.

2021 Rocket Foods New Zealand Rowing Championships

The 2021 Rocket Foods New Zealand Rowing Championships will be held at Lake Ruataniwha, Twizel 16 - 20 February. This is the pinnacle domestic rowing event in New Zealand with the country's top rowers competing for illustrious national championship honours.

A Special General Meeting was held virtually on Monday 14 December, with all 11 Associations voting unanimously in favour of proposed changes to the 2021 Rocket Foods New Zealand Rowing Championships. Find out more about these changes here.

Rocket Foods are Rowing NZ’s principal partners and naming rights sponsor to the Rocket Foods New Zealand Rowing Championships. Rocket Foods strives to provide the best wholesale bakery products to New Zealand, with their products sold at cafes, supermarkets and other eateries nationwide.

High Performance Nomination Deadlines

U18 Coach and Manager Nominations close 17 January.
U21 Coach and Manager Nominations now close 7 March (extended).
U18 North vs South Nominations close 21 February.
Universities Trans-Tasman Nominations close 7 March.
New Zealand World Universities Nominations close 7 March.
All Nominations - excluding U19 Late Nominations - must be submitted online here.
U19 Nominations
U19 Late Nominations are now open (closing 21 February). Please email michelemunro@rowingnz.kiwi for more information on how to submit a late nomination.
All U19 Nominees must complete a 2km erg test between 1 - 28 February and submit results to michelemunro@rowingnz.kiwi by 28 February.
Please contact michelemunro@rowingnz.kiwi for any enquiries.

Billy Webb Challenge

Held on Sunday 24 January 2021, the Billy Webb Challenge is a headlining event of Bayleys Whanganui Vintage Weekend, one of the largest festivals in the region. Prizegiving will be held at 12.30pm on the stage of the Riverside Shindig, which kicks off straight after with live music, dancing, a pop-up bar, food trucks and family fun all afternoon.

Find out more here.

Rules of Racing Review

Suggested changes to the Rules of Racing received from New Zealand's domestic rowing community were sent to Associations in late 2020 and Associations have until mid-March 2021 to provide feedback.

Associations have each identified a Rules Contact Person for their region. This person’s role is to be the Association’s main contact person for Rules, to gather feedback on behalf of their Associations to communicate directly with Sean Durkin (who is leading the rules of racing review, independent from, but working alongside Rowing NZ).

Please contact the Rules Contact Person for your region if you wish to view all proposed changes and contribute feedback for consideration.

Auckland Mat Jensen

Waikato Catherine Stapleton and Pete Yeoman

East Coast Ross Webb

Bay of Plenty Steve Brine

Whanganui Gus Scott

Wellington Catherine Duffin

Marlborough Tim Babbage

Canterbury Justin Wall

Otago Lauren Farnden

Southland Dave Galbraith

NZSSRA Janey Wackrow

Waikato River Authority

Rowing NZ have partnered with the Waikato River Authority to raise awareness among the New Zealand rowing community about the need to protect and preserve our local environment for generations to come.

Throughout 2020 members of our elite team joined Waikato River Trails to assist with the restoration of Huihuitaha Wetland at Lake Karapiro.

If your school, club or association are undertaking any water care initiatives and you would like our team’s involvement, or if you would like to book a restoration session for your group with Waikato River Trails, please contact info@rowingnz.kiwi

Coach Development

2020 saw an increase in overall participation in Rowing NZ Coach Development education, with female coaches making up more than 50% of participants.

If your club or association would like Rowing NZ to host a coaching course in your region, please contact coachdevelopment@rowingnz.kiwi

Coach Developer Opportunities

Are you interested in helping develop rowing coaches in your region?

Rowing NZ remain committed to providing coach education across New Zealand. To be able to deliver on quality and quantity of courses, we are seeking coaches within our community who may be interested in becoming coach developers.

If you have an interest in working with other coaches and becoming a Coach Developer, please contact Rebecca Beattie at coachdevelopment@rowingnz.kiwi

Nelson Rowing Club Coastal Beach Sprints

Nelson Rowing Club hosted a Coastal Beach Sprints event on 3 January on Moturoa Rabbit Island.

A fun, friendly and inclusive event, Nelson Rowing Club welcomed rowers of all abilities to enter the regatta. Entries were made by individuals, partial crews and full crews for a round-robin event.

For more information on the event and to view photos, visit Nelson Rowing Club's Facebook page.

Summer Squad

Summer Squad athletes departed Lake Karapiro on 19 December and returned from home based training on 4 January 2021.

Find out more about Rowing NZ’s international travel throughout 2021 here.

2021 Rowing NZ AGM

The 2021 Rowing NZ AGM will be held on 22 May in Hamilton. Further information will be shared here in due course.

The 2020 Rowing NZ AGM scheduled to be hosted by Waikato Rowing Association was postponed due to COVID-19, and was later hosted virtually. The 2022 and 2023 Rowing NZ AGMs will now be hosted by East Coast and Whanganui Rowing Associations respectively.

Child Protection

Every child and young person has the right to have fun and be safe and free from harm, whether training at a local club or school or representing their country at the international level. Safeguarding is about keeping all children safe from harm, abuse, violence, exploitation, and neglect. It is a shared responsibility and applies to anyone involved in the rowing experiences offered in New Zealand clubs.

Download more information and resources for your club here.

Water Safety

Always run through safety checks before you launch:

Athletes, are you wearing appropriate clothing?
Coaches, are you wearing a life jacket and do you have your safety cut-out lanyard on?
Do you know the waterway rules and hazards?
Have you checked the weather forecast?
Have you lodged your intentions at the club?
Have you checked your boat is safe for use - bow ball, bungs, heel ties and shoe quick release?
Coaches, do you have all the required safety equipment on board?

If you need specific local area water safety information, talk to your club's safety officer or local harbourmaster.

Water Safety posters and stickers for display in rowing clubs can be ordered free of charge by contacting info@rowingnz.kiwi

View the full Rowing Water Safety Code here.

Have we missed anything?

Does your school, club or association have any suggestions for editorial content for Rowing NZ?

Do you have a question or concern you would like Rowing NZ to address?

We would love to hear from you. Please email oarsport@rowingnz.kiwi