Van Dyk here for kids’ TRYathlon

FAVOURITE FERN: Irene van Dyk in action as Silver Fern goal shoot against Jamiaca in 2010. She has since retired from the team, but still plays in the ANZ league and is still as passionate as ever about sport. Mrs van Dyk will be in Gisborne next month as a Weet-Bix TRYathlon sports ambassador. Picture by Dianne Manson NZPA.

Temepara Bailey will not be the only famous Silver Fern to attend a Gisborne Weet-Bix TRYathlon — Irene van Dyk will be here for this year’s event. Temepara Bailey (formerly George) was a 2014 Weet-Bix TRYathlon sports ambassador, alongside 10-time Ironman New Zealand champion Cameron Brown.

This year former Silver Fern goal shoot Irene van Dyk will attend the Gisborne leg.

When asked to come on board she “completely fell in love with the idea”.

“I love seeing the effort the kids put in and the satisfaction once they have completed it is priceless.”

The run-swim-bike event will take place at Nelson Park February 16. Last year Gisborne had the highest rate of attendance per capita in New Zealand with 1008 students.

This year the region is on target to take that title again, with 680 kids aged seven to 15 already signed up — compared with 522 at same time last year.

Van Dyk says she is looking forward to seeing even more children enjoying such an “amazing” event, given the importance of being active.

“Kids who are active stay out of trouble, they make friends with like-minded people, stay fit and healthy and they push themselves to achieve more goals. They also enjoy friendships that will last a lifetime.”

Van Dyk is the most capped international netball player of all time. She debuted her netball career for home country South Africa in 1994, playing 72 times and many of them as captain.

In 2000 she moved to New Zealand and was selected for the Silver Ferns. She was the 2003 New Zealand Sportswoman of the Year, became a New Zealand citizen in 2005 and retired from the Silver Ferns in 2014.

She played 145 games for the Ferns and medalled with the team at the 2009, 2011 and 2012 World Netball Series, the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games and the 2003, 2005 and 2011 World Netball Championships. She still plays in the ANZ Championship.

Irene van Dyk will be joined by fellow 2016 Weet-Bix TRYathlon ambassadors, triathlete and coach Stephen Sheldrake and Gisborne’s NZ high-performance squad triathlete Tayler Reid.

The Gisborne leg is one of 16 Weet-BixTRY’s nationwide and was added to the roster in 2013.

Children can enter individually or as a team, with distances of each leg adjusted to each age group. To register go to try.weetbix.co.nz/events/gisborne.

The Weet-Bix TRYathlon Foundation is available to help with the cost of equipment or registration. To nominate a child, go to try.weetbix.co.nz/schools/weetbix-foundation.