2 days ago
Snow sports lead nominations
Could snow sports be in line for more silverware tonight?
The sport has been recognised for another glittering year across multiple disciplines with nine nominations at the Otago Sports Awards at the Edgar Centre tonight.
Freeskier Luca Harrington, snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott and alpine skier Alice Robinson lead the charge with nominations for sportsman and sportswoman of the year respectively.
After starting the season as an X Games alternate, Harrington has something of a breakout year with a remarkable five world cup podiums, X Games gold, a world championship and New Zealand's first FIS Freeski Crystal Globe.
Sadowski-Synnott was also back to her very best, returning from injury. She secured several world cup podium finishes, landed the the world's first triple cork in a women's slopestyle competition and won the FIS Snowboarding Crystal Globe.
Robinson continued her stellar form with podium finishes and was named Snow Sports New Zealand athlete of the year.
Freeskiers Ruby Star Andrews, Finley Melville Ives and Rocco Jamieson are also up for junior awards after their strong seasons on the world circuit.
Stalwart alpine skier Adam Hall has been nominated for para athlete/team of the year, and Sean Thompson (snowboarding) and Nils Coberger and Tim Cafe (alpine ski racing) are nominated for coach of the year.
But the judging panel of Sport Otago chief executive James Nation, Otago Academy of Sport manager Carmel Leslie, Otago Daily Times sports editor Hayden Meikle, TVNZ sports reporter Michelle Prendiville and University of Otago health sciences pro vice-chancellor Megan Gibbons will have had a tough task picking winners across some tightly contested categories.
Olympic champion kayaker Finn Butcher and Black Caps all-rounder Glenn Phillips are up for sportsman of the year, and Olympic swimmer Erika Fairweather is up for sportswoman of the year.
Cyclist James Gardner, long-distance runner Catherine Lund and netballer Ella Southby round out the finalists for junior sportsman and sportswoman of the year.
Paralympians Anna Grimaldi and Holly Robinson are also finalists for para athlete/team of the year, and Grimaldi's coach Michael Jacobs is up for coach of the year.
Team of the year will be another hotly contested category between the Otago Sparks cricketers, who won the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield, the Southern Stampede, who won the New Zealand men's ice hockey title again, and the Otago men's 4x100m relay team, New Zealand champions and Otago record breakers.
The next generation of Otago's talent will also be recognised with Alexis Owen (surfing), Mason Clarke (cricket), Phoebe Laker (athletics), Josh Grieve (cycling), Joel Paterson (ice hockey) nominated for emerging talent.
Raylene Bates (athletics), Chris Gaffaney (cricket), James Doleman (rugby) are also finalists for official of the year.
The services to sport, innovation in sport and supreme awards will be announced tonight.
Former Otago Spark and White Fern Katey Martin, now a cricket commentator, is the guest speaker, while Melanie Kerr will MC the event again.
Entertainment includes the Nga Wai o Pukehaukea kapa haka group, Otago Girls' singer Grace Tiko, and the Rasa School of Dance Allies crew, who are off to the world championships.
