Local teens to fly NZ flag

MIDWAY Surf Life Saving Club teenagers Chris Dawson and Cory Taylor will fly the New Zealand flag at separate international events next week.
Dawson, 18, is a member of the eight-strong Surf Lifesaving NZ team heading to Germany for the International German Cup pool rescue championships.
Taylor, 18, is in the New Zealand A team to compete at beach carnivals in Australia.
Lytton High student Dawson forced his way into the team with an excellent performance at the New Zealand pool championships in Hamilton last month. It included victory in the open men’s super lifesaver.
He is one of the young guns of a team also featuring former Gisborne clubbie and world and New Zealand championship titleholder Glenn Anderson, now based in Taranaki.
The German Cup features the top countries in the world, including New Zealand’s arch-rivals Australia, and is second only to the world championships.
The NZ A team — a blend of old heads and rising stars — will compete in The 38th Annual Interstate Craft Carnival at Coffs Harbour and the third round of the Fastest Man on Sand series at Redcliffe, Queensland.
Both athletes have acknowledged how much the Tairawhiti Rising Legends programme — run by Sport Gisborne Tairawhiti — has helped them.
Both are into their last year as members of the TRL academy, which helps develop talented 14 to 17-year-old athletes through various workshops, and provides financial assistance.
“Both these athletes are the result of local expertise and support,” TRL manager Kirsty Sharp said.
“They have developed through their club pathways with the support, knowledge and experience of their coaches, with a lot of hard work, and by excelling in their chosen disciplines. The Tairawhiti Rising Legends programme supports them by providing workshops that cover the extra components that make up ‘the elite athlete’ — nutrition, mental skills, public speaking and planning (education, career and sporting).”