Waimea College volleyball player Tane McDonald has been selected for the Pathway to Podium talent identification programme.

Talented sportspeople selected for pathway programme

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Seven of the most talented young sportspeople in Nelson and Tasman have been selected for the regional Pathway to Podium programme designed to help them become the next generation of New Zealand sporting stars.

Swimmers Sam McKenzie, Talya Harwood and Clara Foster, volleyballers Tane McDonald and Holly Chandler, basketballer Max Darling and hockey player Devon Stove have been chosen for the talent development programme run regionally by Sport Tasman in conjunction with Sport NZ and High Performance Sport NZ.

Sam was named Sport Tasman Junior Sportsman of the Year in November for an outstanding 2015 which included winning gold and breaking a NZ age group record in the 100m freestyle at the Australian age groups championships as well as collecting a host of national titles and records. Talya is a national age group representative while Clara is a national age group champion and a member of the national junior team.

Devon is in the national under-16 inline hockey team while Waimea College volleyballers Holly and Tane both national under-19 beach volleyball representatives. Holly says the Pathway to Podium will be “very helpful’’ in preparing her for the step up into international competition.

“To be able to meet other athletes and find out about things like nutrition and the psychology of competing will be really useful,’’ she says.

Pathway to Podium regional coordinator Terri Willcocks says it is the first time the programme has been open to regional athletes from a wider range of sports. Previously it was restricted to those capable of winning medals at Commonwealth and Olympic Games, which meant it was mostly rowers who got picked from the top of the south region.

“It’s great to get a mix of different sports and a mix of males and females,” Terri says. “The quality is excellent, with most of these athletes already performing well nationally and in some cases internationally.’’

Terri says one of the major selection criteria was that the athletes had to be or close to representing New Zealand at age group level. “ We really looked for those with potential and a willingness to learn.’’

The athletes will undertake a series of workshops covering topics such as nutrition, drug free sport, athletic life and performance psychology designed to give them a better understanding of what it takes to be a top fulltime international athlete.

“Sport Tasman is excited to offer this support to our local aspiring athletes and we hope it will help and encourage them on their journey to becoming high performance athletes, ‘’ Terri says.