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Otago Daily Times
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Students striving for solo success
This is part two of the Otago Secondary Schools Sports Association series profiling Otago students who compete in individual sports. In this edition, we highlight a new group of talented individuals, each with their own journey and motivation behind their success. Trinity Catholic College Izabella Luna Christofoletti (15) Sport: Jiu jitsu. Highlight: Training and competitions, including the King of the South regional competition. My highlight was fighting people taller or bigger than me and actually being able to beat them in the first fight and the final round. I have won two golds and two silvers in my last competitions and have been competing against bigger and taller people than me with better physical and technical strengths. Training: Monday to Thursday, sometimes Fridays if competition classes. Sporting dream: To become a professional. Motivation: To strive to be better at the sport and become a great fighter in the future. Blue Mountain College Dylan Rawcliffe (14) Sport: Speedway. Highlight: Winning my first title recently at Riverside Speedway in Invercargill. Training: It's more doing prep work on your car, which I do all myself, checking tyre pressure and set-up etc. Motivation: I grew up watching my dad do speedway, so I wanted to do it as well. I really want to go to the NZ Titles in Ashburton next year, so I need to be able to qualify. Dream: Going to America to race sprint cars in the International class. Logan Park High School Levi Milner (14) Sports: Athletics and volleyball. Highlight: Winning the 200m final at Otago championships in 2025. Training: I train with the Hill City Athletics Club. During athletics season I train 2-3 nights a week with the club. We have club night once a week and I have long jump and high jump training two other nights. I also play other sports, football and volleyball, and training for them also keeps me fit for athletics. Dream: To play volleyball at a professional level or to race at a national level for athletics. Motivation: Every time I lose, it makes me want to race more and more to get better — it's a challenge. Columba College Elizabeth Dearden (16) Sport: Diving. Highlight: Getting to compete internationally in the 2025 Dubai International Aquatics Championships against competitors from five other countries, including the Russian Olympic team, where I was able to place fifth and sixth in my events (1m and 3m springboard). Another highlight was winning three medals at the New Zealand championships this year, coming first in the 1m event, first in the mixed synchronised diving event with my longtime diving partner Archie Vorgers, and third in the 3m event. Training: My squad trains with two-hour pool sessions on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday, where we work on strength training, perfecting and maintaining skills, as well as learning more difficult dives. On Thursdays and Saturdays we have group weight training in the gym to strengthen our dives, as well as personal gym sessions on other days to work on individual skills. Dreams: To continue training and competing to the best of my ability, and to hopefully compete in more international competitions such as the World University Games. I would like diving to allow me to travel around the world, and connect with others who share my passion. Motivation: I am most motivated by the friends I have made in my squad who encourage me to be better, and have supported me through all the ups and downs of diving. I am also highly motivated by my aspirations of further international competitions where I can compete to a high standard, potentially even at the world junior competitions or the World University Games. Finally, I want to be a role model to the younger divers that I coach, and encourage them to do their best and see where diving can take them. Cromwell College Levi Casey (12) Sport: Squash. Highlight: Winning Oceania junior championships. Training: Three to five days of training a week (solo sessions). Dream: Play professionally and play in the top 10 in the world. Motivation: Watching Paul Coll from New Zealand play at all the big PSA events, seeing how much he's achieved and wondering if I could do the same. Mount Aspiring College Eva Small (15) Sport: Freeride skiing and mountain biking. Highlight: Competing at the freeride junior world championships earlier this year. Training: Participating in team sports really helps me to keep fit. I go for runs quite a bit because it helps me with both sports. Dream: To compete in the Freeride World Tour one day, competing with friends and travelling the world at the same time. For mountain biking, it would be really cool to go to the junior downhill world cup. Motivation: I love the challenge of freeride skiing. Each run is an opportunity to improve my skills, whether it's dialing in my technique or gaining confidence in tricks. In Wānaka, the community for mountain biking and skiing is so good. There are always people to push you, and I can still enjoy the sports without being too serious. Queen's High School Eve Kelleher (15) Sports: Triathlon, cross-country, athletics, cycling, duathlon. Highlight so far: Second place at the New Zealand secondary schools triathlon, competing in Nelson at the South Island secondary schools athletics with personal bests in 3000m (first), 2km steeplechase (third) and 4x400m relay (first) and finishing third in 1500m, and finishing fourth in the three-day Tour of Southland event. Training: Swimming three mornings a week, two netball trainings and a game, two running speed sets, a morning bike, an easy run and either a long ride or a cycling race on a Sunday. Dream: To some day represent New Zealand for triathlon and hopefully go to a world championships event, or maybe even the Olympics. I would love to train overseas when I am older. Motivation: I love training hard and competing. I want to do well and be the best I possibly can be in all the sports that I compete in. I know this requires hard work and dedication, but training with like-minded friends makes it enjoyable. My parents also encourage me and are always willing to travel all over New Zealand to help me achieve my sporting goals. My main inspiration is my cousin Anika Thompson. She represents Ireland in athletics and has just recently become the European under-23 champion in the 10km and came third in the 5km. Otago Boys' High School Henry Hodgson (16) Sports: Orienteering and triathlon. Highlight: Fourth in the New Zealand orienteering sprint distance championships. Training: I swim five times, bike three times and run three times per week. Dream: Getting selected for the New Zealand team for the junior world orienteering championship. Motivation: With orienteering, I am keen to explore new territory, always wanting to make no mistakes. With triathlon, I have to get up early to swim, and am motivated to do this by my determination to do well in all of my races. Jonty Smith (17) Sport: Golf. Highlight: Senior A pennants for Balmacewen B52s, captain of OBHS golf team. Training: Personalised golf training plan seven days a week. Dream: To be selected for US college golf or play for Otago at the interprovincial championships. Motivation: My motivation comes from the people who support me like my family and people around the golf club, and wanting to achieve my goals. Noah Kitto (16) Sport: Saloons racing. Highlight: Winning Zealand speedway competitor of the year. Training: Practice runs at Waldronville. Dream: Winning a national title in the streetstocks competition. Motivation: Being the best I possibly can be, and improving my results in each competition.
Otago Daily Times
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Students focused on being best they can be
Every high-achieving sportsperson has a story to tell. The Otago Secondary Schools Sports Association profiles some more southern students doing interesting things. EAST OTAGO HS Samuel Paton (17) Sport: Netball umpiring. Highlight: Year 9 final at Otago schools tournament and being awarded a national volunteer of the year (youth) highly commended award in 2022. Training regime: Walking every morning for 40 minutes to one hour out on the farm or indoors on the treadmill. I also make an effort to go through a thorough stretching regime every morning and night. This is a new aspect of my training after feedback from an umpire coach. I umpire a few games through the week, which helps to continue to refine my calls and positioning/vision during the game. After each game, it is important for me to journal about my game, what went well, what I was working on and what I can improve for next time. Self-reflection is essential to my growth as an umpire. Another aspect of training is reading through the netball rulebook as it is ever changing and adapting. Sporting dream: To umpire at an international level. Motivation: Knowing that the individuals who are playing in a game I am officiating have an umpire that cares and works hard to make sure the game is fair and safe. The gratitude expressed by players, parents and coaches outweigh the critical remarks and continue to bring me back to the game I love and have been umpiring for the last four years. Paige Walker (17) Sport: Touch refereeing. Highlight: Going to two national tournaments in the 2024-25 season: the youth nationals in Auckland and the masters nationals in Christchurch. Both tournaments were over four days with several games on each day. During these tournaments, I met many different people and made so many connections across the country. Sporting dream: My dream with touch refereeing is to gain the qualifications to go to Australia to represent New Zealand as a referee, or even higher, to qualify for a Touch World Cup competition. Motivation: Umpiring opens up variety and challenges me to get out of my comfort zone and be myself. The hardest thing I have had to overcome is my lack of self-confidence. I am a different person from the person I was in 2023, and I am still continuing to grow. OTAGO GIRLS' HS Lyvia Nilsen (year 13) Sport: Diving (eight years). Highlights: Competing in the Dubai international aquatic championships with some impressive results. Competing against athletes from five other countries, including the Russian Olympic team, she placed fifth in all her events — 1m, 3m, and platform. Lyvia also had an outstanding performance at the Otago diving championships where she placed first in the 3m event and first in the synchro event, as well as securing second in both the platform and 1m events. Training regime: Lyvia has a vigorous routine, training five days per week as well as two days weight training in the gym. Her diving training consists of a 15-minute warm-up, body weight conditioning, perfecting specific dives, learning new dives and numerous drills and skills relative to diving. Sunday is the rest day. Sporting dream: Lyvia's sporting dream is to firstly gain a scholarship overseas associated with her diving and to compete internationally at big diving events such as the world championships. Motivation: Lyvia's motivation comes from her love of her sport and her dreams of competing at the World Games. She enjoys the atmosphere and the camaraderie of her fellow divers she has grown with over the last eight years. She also enjoys the company of her coaches who have gained success with the diving team. Lyvia assists OGHS with their swimming sports and puts on displays of her diving techniques and also helps judge the diving events. JOHN MCGLASHAN COLLEGE Josh Grieve (17) Sport: Cycling. Highlight: Winning the individual pursuit and under-19 3km time trial representing Otago at track nationals. Training regime: Riding about 375km a week on the bike with additional gym sessions. Sporting dream: To make the Olympics in either road or track cycling. Motivation: The feeling of riding, the freeness and beauty of the environment and success. KING'S HS Kairangi Koni (16) Sports: Golf and touch. Highlights so far: Fifth year in King's 1st golf team, remaining undefeated in matchplay (20-plus matches) for the school and part of team qualifying for New Zealand schools finals for first time; various wins in provincial tournaments such as under-19 Central Otago championships and under-16 Otago championships; top-10 placings in NZ age-grade championships — North Island, South Island and NZ championships; represented Otago under-19 team (third year), finishing runner up at national interprovincial in 2023 and 2024; top-five placings in open provincial championships such as Lakes District championships and Queenstown Open; debut for Otago v Southland, winning both matches; three years in Chisholm Links senior A pennants team; NZ Order of Merit events — three from six top-10 finishes; three years in Golf NZ South Island junior talent programme. Training: Spring/summer — five to six trainings/games per week with King's/Otago touch teams, five to six golf trainings/games per week, three to four gym sessions per week on flexibility, balance and core conditioning; autumn/winter — seven-plus golf trainings/games per week, five gym sessions per week on flexibility, balance, strength and core conditioning. Sporting dream: My long-term goal is to play golf professionally and continue my love and enjoyment of the game. My mid-term goal is to play golf at college level in the US and study civil engineering during this process. My short-term goal is to perform well in NZ Order of Merit events, gain World Amateur Golf Ranking points and continue to lower my tournament scoring averages. Motivation: My parents inspire me to aim high, do my best and not give up on what I want to achieve. I'm lucky to have great support from them and also the guys at Chisholm Links, my coach John Griffin and provincial coaches and managers. Keeping my goals in mind motivates me to prioritise my sporting and academic preparation and performance over other things. Ultimately, the love of the game of golf motivates me every day. It's always challenging but it doesn't feel like hard work, but rewarding when you're doing what you love. BAYFIELD HS Madeline Hage-Sleiman (14) Sport: Karate Highlight: Getting the opportunity to train with Masaji Taira Sensei. He specialises in form applications (bunkai) and I have gone to two of his annual Dunedin seminars. Training regime: I go to training four times a week: Mondays, one hour of fighting; Tuesdays, one hour of kobudo (weapons); Thursdays, two hours of kata (forms) and Saturdays three hours of sport karate training. On top of these trainings I also lift weights twice a week. Sporting dream: To make the New Zealand team for kata (forms) and be able to go to Oceania and world events. I would love to go to the Goju Ryu championships in Okinawa to compete in kata (forms) and kobudu (weapons). Motivation: The idea that I can always improve and all it takes is hard work and commitment. DUNSTAN HS Andrew Baird (17) Sport: Clay target shooting. Highlight: Competing in both secondary school nationals and the Bodkin Shield, a three-day adult competition with shooters from all over New Zealand. In both of these events, I met lots of new people, all of whom were easy to laugh with and willing to share some tricks that they have learnt through their time shooting. Training: I practise once a week after school at the Alexandra Clay Target Club with the help of a few of the club members who stay around to coach me. Sporting dream: My dream would be to represent New Zealand one day in an Oceania competition, or even at the Olympics. Motivation: Clay target shooting offers up many challenges, and it has been the mental ones I have struggled with most. Learning to be able to keep my emotions in check, reset and refocus after every shot have been some of the hardest things I've had to do. But by learning these skills and overcoming the challenges, I have become a much better person for it and am still continuing to learn so much from the sport.
