Olympic Sailor Named Far North Sportsperson Of The Year

Olympic silver medallist Blair Tuke has been named sportsperson of the year at the 2012 Far North District Council Sports Awards.

The Kerikeri sailor, who placed second in the 49er class at the London Olympics with Tauranga sailor Peter Burling, was one of more than 40 sportspeople to be honoured at the awards hosted by the Council and Sport Northland in Kaitaia on Friday night.

Tuke was also named Juken New Zealand Ltd Sportsman of the Year.

Top Energy Ltd Sportswoman of the Year was Kerikeri hockey player Elley Miller who has represented New Zealand at under-18 level and is currently a New Zealand under-21 World Cup squad member.

The Northland Stingrays Senior A team, who took the senior men’s title at the 2012 New Zealand Inline Hockey Championships in Hamilton earlier this month, was named Riders Sport Depot Team of the Year.

Other winners were:

Carters Masters Sportsperson of the Year: Frances Piacun (waka ama).

Mayor Awards: Steve Crene (jetsprinting), Jayne Clarke (mounted games), Klay Lanigan (rodeo) and Christian Huriwai (unicycling).

ASB Youth Achievement Awards: Blake Hodges (boxing), Samuel Tzikoucos (unicycling), Rachel Martin (athletics/bike/triathlon), Kenny Mokoraka (bowls) and Rupert Mark (football).

ASB Code Awards: Imogen Hull and E J Nathan (athletics), Ashley Dye and Atama O’Connell (basketball), Monte Pawa (bowls), Tegan Newman (equestrian), Alex Neeley (golf), Stevie Newsome and Andrew Van der Linden (gymsport), Elley Miller (hockey), Georgia Grimme (inline hockey), Oceane Maihi (netball), Tarei Patuwai (powerlifting), Arihiana Marino and Jack Ram (rugby), Jaydenn Bentley-Hape (rugby league), Blair Tuke (sailing), Aroha Heta (shooting), Jayne Clarke, Haydn Jurisich and Daniel Gaualofa (swimming), Riley Phillips-Harris (taekwondo) and Merita Heihei and Kingi Herewini (waka ama).

Swimming and rugby league coach Jim Larkin was named Sport NZ Coach of the Year.

Rugby referee Boris Jurlina was named Steinlager Edge Referee/Umpire of the Year.

Special Olympics Bay of Islands and Northland Stingrays Inline Hockey committee member Nicole Grimme was named Shackelton’s Amcal Chemist Administrator of the Year.

Waana Puru (Horeke Netball), Reg and Neta Frost (Te Rarawa Rugby) and Noel Bonner (Kaikohe Bowls/Far North Bowls) won Northland Age Service to Sport Awards.