Sailing and Athletics Additions to Olympic Team

The New Zealand Olympic Committee named four more athletes to the London 2012 New Zealand Olympic Team today. Sailors Hamish Pepper and Jim Turner in the Mens Keelboat (Star) and Dan Slater in the Mens One Person Heavyweight Dinghy (Finn) together with 5,000m runner Adrian Blincoe, were confirmed by the New Zealand Olympic Committee selectors. SAILORS HONOURED Were honoured to be named to the New Zealand Olympic Sailing Team said Star sailor Jim Turner after his selection today. Its an important milestone to tick off on our way to the big one. Although London 2012 will be Turners first stab at the Olympic Games, he is not new to the high performance sailing world with six world championships to his name. The new combination in the Star Class with Pepper is proving successful with the duo proving competitive and on-pace at recent events. Both Hamish Pepper and Dan Slater have represented New Zealand at the Olympic Games in the past and are still at the top of their sport. Pepper sailed in the Mens One Person Dinghy (Laser) to a 10th place finish at the Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996, 7th place finish at Athens 2004, and then 9th at Beijing 2008 in the Star Class. Dan Slater raced at the Sydney 2000 Olympics in the 49er skiff class with current Olympic 470 coach Nathan Handley and finished 8th before switching to the Mens One Person Heavyweight Dinghy (Finn) for 2008 and finished 12th. This season, Slater has had two fifth place finishes at World Cup regattas, and a good track record of previous results from the 2012 Olympic venue. In many ways, the Weymouth venue is similar to Murrays Bay where I learnt to sail and have been sailing since I was ten Slater said. It feels close to home. The sailors were nominated and selected following performances at this months World Championships and ongoing ISAF World Cups results. There are now fifteen sailors attending the London 2012 Olympic Games, representing New Zealand in nine of the ten Olympic sailing disciplines. ATHLETICS 1000th OLYMPIAN CONFIRMED FOR SECOND GAMES Adrian Blincoe, New Zealands 1000th Olympian, has been selected for his second Olympic Games where he will represent New Zealand in the 5,000 metres. Blincoe met the New Zealand Olympic Committee selection standard of 13m 20s in July 2011, running 13m 18.27 in Barcelona. He was not named in the team in Marchs initial selection, pending proof of current form. With the US season now underway and a strong time of 13m 23.27sec recorded in California last week, the selectors are satisfied with his fitness. Blincoe holds the New Zealand 5000 metres record at 13m 10.19s, set in July 2008. He was named New Zealands 1000th Olympian in 2009 after a mammoth process named and numbered New Zealands Olympians. Athletes were numbered alphabetically by games. Blincoe represented New Zealand at the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006 and the Delhi Commonwealth Games in 2010. There are currently 1123 New Zealand Olympians. Blincoes selection brings the New Zealand Olympic Team to 88. Further athletics selections are expected.