ODT – Triathlon: Three from Otago named

View original ODT article here.

Published on Saturday 1st November 2014

Otago provides two Olympic contenders and a rising star to the Triathlon New Zealand squads for 2015.

Tony Dodds, Nicky Samuels (both podium squad) and Fynn Thompson (talent squad) had their places confirmed yesterday. Wanaka-based Samuels and Dodds are joined by Andrea Hewitt (Christchurch) and Ryan Sissons (Auckland) in a small elite squad, comprising those athletes the national body believes can win a medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. It is a sign of Dodds’ rising status in the sport, and a boost for Samuels, ensuring there is no repeat of last season, when she was controversially cut from the top squad before earning her spot at the Commonwealth Games and performing well.

High performance director Graeme Maw said having a smaller group allowed for an intense focus on the triathletes’ respective campaigns.”After a year of much change and learning for the high performance team, we are delighted to be supporting a focused group of athletes … on the pathway to the Rio and/or Tokyo Olympic Games. We leave 2014 and look forward with a group of athletes having tasted international podia or breakthrough successes, and a real ability to focus on their campaign needs.”

A second-tier development squad includes just five athletes, all from the North Island. Maw said the door was not closed, but the sport needed to invest wisely and ensure that the next generation was being identified.

A potential star of the next generation is Thompson, the New Zealand junior representative from Queenstown. He is one of only two South Islanders named in the national talent squad, and his progress will be monitored closely in the coming years. The New Zealand triathlon squads will again be based at the sport’s high performance centre in Cambridge.