Otago-Southland award finalists announced

The finalists for the 2017 Otago-Southland Awards of Excellence have been announced ahead of next week's ceremony in Dunedin.

Every year, regional Awards of Excellence ceremonies are held around the country to officially recognise members for their hard work and dedication to Surf Life Saving in New Zealand.

The Otago/Southland Awards of Excellence will be held at the Mornington Tavern in Dunedin on Friday May 19 and include Warrington, St Kilda, St Clair, Brighton, Kaka Point and Oreti Surf Life Saving Clubs.

The evening will begin with the presentation of Service Awards and top junior and senior age group awards for Otago Surf Sports competitions held throughout the past season and continue with the presentation of major sporting and lifesaving awards such as Lifeguard of the Year and Volunteer of the Year. The evening will conclude with the announcement of Club of the Year.

Sam Clutterbuck, Club Support Officer for the Otago-Southland area, says the awards are an important way to end a busy season.

"It's a great opportunity to congratulate and celebrate the time and energy that our members have given over the 2016/17 season," he says.

Awards of Excellence finalists:

2017 Coach of the Year
Dave McPhee - Brighton
Paul Richardson - Kaka Point
Timothy Ball - Oreti
Chris Haig - St Clair
Isaac Davies - St Clair

2017 Instructor/Examiner of the Year
Alex Sutherland - Brighton
Shana Pohe - Brighton
Samantha Nielsen - Oreti
Chris Haig - St Clair
Peter Gibbons - St Kilda

2017 Lifeguard of the year
Shana Pohe - Brighton
Olivia Richardson - Kaka Point
Forbes O'Reilly - Oreti
Chris Haig - St Clair
Rebecca McNaughton - Warrington

2017 Sports Person of the Year
Phoebe Aburn - Brighton
Erika Fairweather - St Clair
Danyon Noakes - St Kilda

2017 Sports Team of the Year
St Clair IRB Team - St Clair
St Clair U14 Pool Champs Relay Team - St Clair
St Clair Women's IRB Team - St Clair
St Kilda Sands Team - St Kilda
U19 Men's Canoe Team - Brighton

2017 Surf Event Guard of the Year
Duncan New - St Kilda
Olivia Richardson - Kaka Point

2017 Surf Official of the Year
Dennis Trembath - Brighton
Sue Sparrow - Brighton
Brent Matehaere - St Clair
Michael Andrews - St Clair
Sean Doyle - Warrington

2017 Volunteer of the Year + President's Trophy
Tamati Langsbury - Brighton
Sarah Ball - Oreti
Chris Haig - St Clair
James Coombes - St Clair
Nic Brice - St Kilda
Rachel Oakley - St Kilda
Peter Gibbons - St Kilda

Tickets are $10 each and can be purchased through club secretaries.

For more information, please contact:

Lisa Smith, Media & Communications Manager, SLSNZ
Phone 0276 488 823
Email lisa.smith@surflifesaving.org.nz