Congratulations to the winners of the 2026 Toyota Financial Services Surf Life Saving Northern Region Awards of Excellence

Surf Life Saving Northern Region (SLSNR) has commemorated a season of challenges and successes at the annual 2025-26 Toyota Financial Services Northern Region Awards of Excellence at Shed 10 in the Auckland CBD on Saturday 4 July.

Northern Region General Manager Zac Franich says the night was a long-awaited opportunity to showcase the tremendous work of clubs and individuals, celebrate the year's achievements, and honour the exceptional contributions of the surf lifesaving community.

"We are incredibly proud of all the awardees this year and the fantastic achievements of our surf lifesaving community. They have shown us courage, skill, and dedication to perform at their absolute best,” he says.

Across the 2025–2026 patrol season, Northern Region lifeguards saved 332 lives and assisted a further 473 people to safety. Patrols carried out 24,751 preventative actions, helping 174,242 beachgoers return home safely, and contributed almost 65,000 volunteer hours. Lifeguards were called on for 106 after-hours search and rescue operations, attended 102 major and 511 minor first-aids, and conducted 73 searches across the season.

Zac Franich says the scale of the service reflects both rising demand for the beach and the dedication of the lifeguard community.

“This was a season that asked a huge amount of our people, and they delivered. West coast clubs in particular patrolled through relentless surf and fast-changing conditions, and we saw a significant rise in after-hours and high-risk activity,” he said.

Franich paid special tribute to the recipients of Service, Distinguished Service Awards and Life Memberships awards.

“We wouldn’t be a successful organisation without the long-standing commitment of these individuals, who have put in many years of dedicated service to keep our coastlines safe.”

The standout club of the night was Mairangi Bay Surf Lifesaving Club, which claimed 10 of the 34 awards and swept the senior sporting honours, including the Toyota Financial Services Supreme Sport Award, both Open Sportsperson titles, and the Aon Sports Team of the Year. 

Red Beach Surf Life Saving Club was named Yamaha Club of the Year on the back of a strong season that also delivered four awards in total, among them the Toyota Financial Services Coach of the Year. 

Piha Surf Life Saving Club picked up five awards spanning sport and frontline lifesaving, headlined by Karel Witten-Hannah being named DHL Lifeguard of the Year, while United North Piha Lifeguard Service took out three of the people-focused awards, including Volunteer of the Year and Rookie Lifeguard of the Year.

The bp Rescue of the Year went to the Muriwai Volunteer Lifeguard Service’s Paid Lifeguard Service and Search and Rescue squad for a dramatic resuscitation effort on the evening of Monday 8 December 2025. As patrol members were packing up, a swimmer got into difficulty in a dangerous section of surf. Lifeguards entered the water with rescue equipment, while teammates mobilised first-aid resources and prepared for a critical patient response. After multiple rounds of CPR and coordinated advanced patient care, the patient regained a pulse and began breathing independently before being handed to emergency services, a powerful example of how preparation, skill and teamwork can make the difference between life and death.

On the sporting front, Mairangi Bay’s Fergus Eadie and Zoe Crawford were jointly awarded the Supreme Sport Award and also claimed the Open Sportsman and Open Sportswoman of the Year titles, respectively. Both enjoyed standout international seasons with the Black Fins, with Fergus and Zoe winning World Games gold and contributing to record-breaking performances on the world stage. The Aon Sports Team of the Year went to Mairangi Bay’s 4x50m Mixed Lifesaver Relay of Zoe Crawford, Rae Kwan, Fergus Eadie and Harrison Klouwens, who set a world record at the New Zealand Pool Rescue Championships in the blue-ribbon event.

“Congratulations to all our winners and finalists. Surf lifesaving is a truly unique movement in Aotearoa that combines community service with athletic ability, and it’s important to acknowledge every facet of our movement,” says Zac Franich.