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Paralympics NZ announces strong team for Beijing

Tuesday 6 May 2008, 7:13PM

By Paralympics NZ

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New Zealand will send a team comprising 30 athletes to the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing.

The team is headed by Athens Gold medallists Tim Prendergast (training in UK) and Matt Slade (Auckland), both athletics, and Michael Johnson (Auckland) in shooting. Tim Johnson, Dan Buckingham, Jai Waite and Curtis Palmer (all Auckland), Gerry Tinker (Christchurch) and Sholto Taylor (Hastings) are the members of the gold medal-winning Wheel Blacks, who will go to Beijing to defend the title.

Liam Sanders (Auckland), Maurice Toon (Waikato) and Jeremy Morriss (Rangiora) in Boccia and Daniel Sharp (Auckland) in swimming are other team members who won medals in Athens.

Current world record holders, Wellington’s Paula Tesoriero in cycling and Invercargill’s Jessica Hamill in athletics, will be athletes to watch, with other debut athletes including the youngest team member 15-year-old Sophie Pascoe in swimming.

Fiona Allan, PNZ Chief Executive says that the team is slightly smaller than the 36 athletes who went to the 2004 Athens Paralympics, as strict selection criteria have been applied.

“The 30 athletes selected to represent New Zealand at the 2008 Paralympic Games have demonstrated that they are capable of medal winning performances in Beijing. The Games selection process has meant that the whole team is very focused on achieving these goals and we believe that this will be the best-prepared team that has ever been sent to a Paralympic Games event.”

The seven sports that New Zealand will be represented in are: athletics, Boccia, cycling, powerlifting, shooting, swimming and wheelchair rugby. Twenty-six officials will accompany the athletes led by four-time Paralympic Gold Medallist and Chef de Mission, Duane Kale.

The Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, which will be held from September 6-17, will use the same venues and Games village as the Olympic Games. It is expected that 4000 athletes from 130 countries will compete.


 


 

The New Zealand 2008 Paralympic Games Team is as follows:-


 


 

Athletics

Terry

Faleva'ai

Hamilton


 

Matthew

Slade

Auckland


 

Jessica

Hamill

Invercargill


 

Kate

Horan

Wellington


 

Tim

Prendergast

Currently in UK


 


 


 


 

Athletics Sport Manager / Field Coach

Raylene

Bates


 

Athletics Track Coach

Alan

Coulston


 


 


 


 


 

Boccia

Liam

Sanders

Auckland


 

Greig

Jackson

Christchurch


 

Maurice

Toon

Hamilton


 

Kerri

Bonner

Christchurch


 

Amanda

Slade

Auckland


 

Henderikus

Dijkstra

Dunedin


 

Jeremy

Morriss

North Canterbury


 


 


 


 

Boccia Sports Manager / Coach

Trevor

Jenkinson

Boccia Sports Manager / Coach

Boccia Coach

Matthew

Fricker

Boccia Coach

Boccia Ramp Assistant

Sharon

McLeod

Boccia Ramp Assistant

Boccia Ramp Assistant

Luke

Morriss

Boccia Ramp Assistant

Boccia Ramp Assistant

Dave

O'Donovan

Boccia Ramp Assistant


 


 


 


 

Cycling

Paula

Tesoriero

Wellington


 

Annmarie

Donaldson

Palmerston North


 

Annaliisa

Farrell

Christchurch


 

Jayne

Parsons

Christchurch


 

Fiona

Southorn

Northland


 


 


 


 

Cycling Coach

Simon

Crumpton


 

Cycling Coach / Mechanic

Brian

Gilbert


 


 


 


 


 

Powerlifting

George

Taamaru

Auckland


 


 


 


 

Powerlifting Coach

Justin

Keogh


 

Shooting

Michael

Johnson

Auckland


 


 


 


 

Shooting Coach

Dwayne

Woolliams


 


 


 


 


 

Swimming

Daniel

Sharp

Auckland


 

Sophie

Pascoe

Christchurch


 

Cameron

Leslie

Whangarei


 


 


 


 

Swimming Sports Manager / Coach

Simon

Mayne


 

Swimming Coach

Roly

Crichton


 


 


 


 


 

Wheelchair Rugby

Curtis

Palmer

Auckland


 

Sholto

Taylor

Hastings


 

Jai

Waite

Auckland


 

Daniel

Buckingham

Auckland


 

Geremy

Tinker

Christchurch


 

Adam

Wakeford

Auckland


 

David

Klinkhamer

Hamilton


 

Tim

Johnson

Auckland


 


 


 


 

Wheelchair Rugby Sports Manager / Coach

Grant

Sharman


 

Wheelchair Rugby Staff

Catherine

Tinker


 

Wheelchair Rugby Staff

Paul

Jackson


 

Performance Analyst

Jason

Healey


 


 


 


 


 

TEAM MANAGEMENT


 


 


 

Chef De Mission

Duane

Kale


 

Games Operations Manager

Ken

Sowden


 

Team Doctor

Ian

Murphy


 

Massage

Wendy

Hilton


 

Sport Psychologist

Rod

Corban


 

High Performance Support

Malcolm

Humm


 

Logistics Manager

Deb

Shattock