International Team Travel Policy – Consultation Opportunity
In response to requests around travel for junior teams to Australia, the G5 – International Team Travel Policy has been updated.
In accordance with the ONZ process around policy development we include Club consultation.
Due to the urgency of getting this policy finalised for the 2019 tour, we are asking clubs to provide any feedback on this revised policy within 2 weeks No later than Thursday 8 August 2019.
Job Vacancy
Applications are now open for the positions of:
Southern Cross Coach (1) and Team Staff (3)
The primary role of the NZ Team Staff is to provide support for the NZ Team Manager during the competition so the team members can concentrate on their own activities aimed at maximising their performance.
Applications close Tuesday 6 August 2019
H&S Question:
Should you let ONZ know if there has been an accident or incident that requires medical attention?
Answer:
YES use the incident online report, especially if hospital treatment was required. If serious enough WorkSafe also need to be notified, as shown in the ONZ Safety Management Plan. This information is used to improve the way we keep everybody safe.
View from the Chair
The last month has seen international sporting achievements come thick and fast for Kiwi sports fans, with some great results in the cricket, netball and rugby. Whilst this has dominated sports headlines in the broader NZ community, within the orienteering world the major events on the international calendar are well underway. JWOC will have seen many of you up late tracking the progress of our top Kiwi juniors earlier in July, and it was great to see these athletes of the future fronting up against the worlds best.
Congrats to all of the Kiwi competitors, and a special shout out to the team of officials and helpers who do a lot of work in the background to support our athletes before and during the event. This weekend the World Mountain Bike Orienteering Champs gets underway in Denmark, with NZ fielding its largest team for some years, covering junior and senior open grades. And in mid August, we will have our senior athletes to follow at WOC in Norway, so there is plenty to get excited about in the high performance area and we wish all our kiwi athletes the best in their racing. We also pass on a huge thanks to all the officials and helpers that help make these trips a success.
Whilst we naturally like to see great results arise out of these performances, there is a broader purpose than just results when it comes to sending our athletes overseas. The learning each of these athletes gets from these experiences, running on new terrain and up against other world class performers, will have a flow on effect to our domestic competitions in NZ. It can lift standards, but also broaden mindsets around how we can run things here in NZ. I saw some maps get sent through from some of the MTBO athletes that they have been training on, and it sparked an online conversation around how we could run different kinds of events here in NZ. New ideas and new thinking are critical if the sport is to keep developing and growing.
I was fortunate enough to get invited to a strategic planning session that Waikato Orienteering Club ran recently. One of the questions that was framed at the start of the session was around understanding who are the people that come to events. In that region, the largest numbers were people that come from adventure racing and trail running. What ensued was a really interesting discussion around what kinds of events the club should run, and how they should cater to the different segments of the market that comes to events. They were thinking ahead to the future and about the changing needs of participants, and it is such a great example of a club taking positive steps in adapting and broadening its mindset about what it does. I have also been enjoying connecting with many club officials and other key volunteers, talking to them about the issues they are experiencing, opportunities they see, and their views on ONZ and how it can deliver value for them. This is the start of what I hope will be many conversations, and will contribute to the work that is happening reviewing ONZ and how it should be shaped to deliver value now and into the future. Anyone can be part of this conversation, and are welcome to contact me, or participate in a survey which will be coming out in the near future.
On a more specific topic, we are also planning to put together a working group to address how we should coordinate major event allocations. This group needs to be comprised of people from clubs, as any solution which is developed needs to have the buy in from clubs and the broader orienteering community. Consequently, I would love to hear from anyone who is keen to be part of this, so please contact me ASAP to signal your interest.
Finally, we are in the process of recruiting a new General Manager. Catriona McBean has decided to leave ONZ to pursue a PhD, having been with ONZ since 2013. She has brought more structure and discipline to the organisation over that time, and we thank her for her hard work and wish her the best in her future endeavours. We will be interviewing candidates for the GM role in the coming days, and look forward to presenting the new GM in due course.
As advised, I am happy to hear from any member and welcome any feedback on ONZ or ideas you may have for the sport. I can be reached by email on orienteeringnzchair@gmail.com, or phone 027 302 4863. I look forward to talking with many of you in the coming weeks.
Pete Swanson
Event Liaison Update
Events update
- U23 Camp – Counties Manukau 7-13 December 2019
- Junior Camp – Counties Manukau 15-20 December 2019
2020 Events confirmed
- 2020 National Orienteering Championships – Wellington
- 2020 National MTBO Championships – OBOP
- 2020 National Schools – Hawkes Bay
- 2020 North Island Secondary Schools Champs – Counties Manukau
We are seeking expressions of interest for hosting the;
- 2020 South Island Secondary School Champs (due for sanctioning by the 18 September 2019). Ideally, it should be held on the second weekend of the April school holidays, but we are open to any date offers. It is feasible to hold this in conjunction with another event.
- 2020 NZ Rogaine Champs.
Controllers list update
A major update has been done on the ONZ controllers list. I would like to thank you all for assisting me. Please visit the list here to ensure that the information is correct. Note that the number of listed controllers has decreased from about 95 to 70 throughout this exercise with some clubs critically short. Please contact Russell Higham if you would like a controller course run in your area.
Rules review
We are undertaking (at long last) a comprehensive rewrite of ONZ Foot Orienteering Rules. The review team consists of Marquita Gelderman, Gillian Ingham, David Metherell, Micheal Croxford (mapping committee rep) and Russell Higham. We expect to complete this by November 2019.
If a club has any queries regarding land access and Heath and Safety matters please contact ONZ Event Liaison Russell Higham: events@orienteering.org.nz
High Performance Update
July was the start of the international season with JWOC in Denmark at the beginning of the month.
Late July saw the start of the WMTBO also in Denmark.
WOC in Norway in mid-August will see the wrap of the major events for NZL selected teams.
More detail on HP can be found in the regular HP Updates.
In Other News …
MTBO Controlling & Organising workshop – all welcome
Sunday 27 – Monday 28 October 2019 – Maryborough (Victoria, Australia)
This will be run by by Sandor Talas (Hungary) who has conducted such clinics for the IOF in the past. It will commence on Sunday afternoon (after the last race) in Maryborough and conclude about lunchtime Monday. Participants will be reimbursed some of their accommodation costs for the Sunday night.
This workshop is suitable for all ranges of experience – for those who want / are involved in organising / controlling events in Australia, to those who wish to gain IOF accreditation to be involved in international events overseas. It is hoped to have participants from all states and NZ. More details will be provided later.
To register: – send email to kayhaarsma@hotmail.com providing name; phone number, and stating your present level of experience. More info – Kay Haarsma +61 403 565 534
Sport NZ launch new website dedicated to youth sport in New Zealand
The home of youth sport in New Zealand
Sport NZ has for some time communicated the importance of keeping young people in sport, though the Balance is Better philosophy and initiative. Evidence tells us that for rangatahi to reach their full potential and develop a lifelong love of sport, they need to have fun, try a range of different codes and focus on skills development.
The Balance is Better website seeks to support those involved in delivering youth sport such as partners, coaches, sports administrators, teachers, parents and volunteers. It aims to:
- Embed the Balance is Better philosophy developed by Sport NZ
- Communicate coaching good practice; share tips and advice across codes
- Discuss and debate key issues around youth sport development
- Build momentum towards programme changes being enacted by sport delivery partners in sympathy with Balance is Better
How to get involved
- Go to www.balanceisbetter.org.nz
- Enjoy the content!
- Register to join the community
GM starting a new adventure
Catriona McBean, our GM, will be leaving Orienteering NZ at the end of September after 6.5 years in the role. Her next adventure is going back to university to undertake her PhD at Waikato in disability sport.
Many of you may not be aware I have been working part-time for dsport in Wellington for 7 years and am a Board member of Paralympics NZ Board as well as doing my voluntary work in disability sport – most recently in Kiribati, so this opportunity was too good to pass up.
Over the last 6.5 years I have had the pleasure to be involved in a number of innovative and exciting orienteering opportunities which I believe have put Orienteering NZ is a very strong position in terms of sport in NZ. Some of the highlights include the World Masters Games in Auckland, the current JWOC2022 bid, the online membership database and a surprise we’ll announce in August.
In the background, I have worked extensively with the Orienteering NZ board and other staff to ensure policies, systems and processes have been developed to provide protection for athletes, clubs and orienteering as a whole. On this front the Safety Management Plan work undertaken by Russell is an example of best practice in action. Malcolm’s work in pushing boundaries and raising standards in High Performance is another example. Do not underrate the impact these are having on the sport, both in terms of outcomes within the sport, but also Orienteering NZ’s credibility and standing in the wider sporting and outdoors communities.
Financially, Orienteering NZ has grown significantly over this time – doubling our net assets. We are now in a sound financial position and have the financial capability to undertake new initiatives, such as the membership database, which will help clubs make it easy for members. Prudent decision-making will continue this growth and certainty for the future.
I know many of you questioned my appointment years ago, asking “why is a non-orienteering running our sport?” I hope in this time this question has been answered and the outcomes delivered vindicated my appointment. As one of the few growing sports in NZ, be proud of your sport, celebrate the growth in membership especially within youth but do continue to follow your courses and align your compasses N as there is still lots to explore and achieve. Moving forward I wish Orienteering NZ and all orienteers the best of success both nationally and internationally. I hope you all find your adventures, as I have found mine.
Catriona McBean
General Manager
We welcome your feedback at any time.
Our mailing address is:
gm@orienteering.org.nz
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