Rowing New Zealand Pathway Update
After an action-packed winter, which saw all our age group teams compete both in New Zealand and overseas and finished off with the Interprovincial Regatta in a snowy Twizel, we are looking forward to an exciting summer season of rowing.
The updated RNZ Pathway list is now available and instead of the old categories of Tier 1, 2 and 3, we have now moved the athletes into three levels, Performance, Development, and Identification. This change is to line up with the recent announcement of the creation of the Summer Performance and Development Hubs across the country.
The aim of the Hubs is to provide a place for the next generation of Elite NZ rowers. Firstly, for the athletes to learn and develop the skills needed to set themselves on the way to being a high performing athlete in a regional setting, at their own pace, with a strong support base (Development Hubs). With the next stage aiming to bring together the identified athletes into a more specialised setting (Performance Hubs) to step up the level of training and support, to drive the athletes towards NZ team selection. Each Hub will operate slightly differently, this allows for more flexibility and to suit the needs of the athletes in the region/club.
The Performance level athletes have been identified as RNZ prospects for the LA Olympics and include both elite and U23 eligible athletes. Their selection was based upon performances and engagement over the winter months and reaching performance metrics. The Development level athletes have been identified as the RNZ 2032 cohort for the Brisbane Olympics and beyond. They are the athletes for the most part who have been in our 2022 and 2023 U23 teams and 2023 U21 and U19 teams. The Identification level athletes are those athletes who in the past have been in U19 and U21 teams or gained trials for age group teams in 2023 and met the Pathway performance metrics.
Over this summer the Performance and Development level athletes through their Hubs or clubs will be allocated some financial support to help them develop, how this will look, will differ for every athlete. There are some Development* level athletes who have met the requirements over the winter but through their Individual Development Plans have indicated that they will be taking some time out during the summer but will still be engaged with the RNZ Pathway process, these athletes will not receive any financial assistance over the summer, along with any athletes who will row under their school program for the 2023-2024 season.
The next intake and update of the RNZ Pathway will be done in April 2024. This would allow for new athletes to get onto the Pathway, if they met the standards listed in the Pathway selection document. Currently listed athletes will also need to meet these requirements over the summer to stay on the RNZ Pathway unless granted an exemption from the RNZ Athlete Development Manager. The Rowing New Zealand International Pathway was updated in September and can be found on the Rowing NZ website.