Sport Awards: Local names in Halbergs mix

Dargaville para-cyclist Emma Foy (rear), here with pilot cyclist Laura Fairweather, has been nominated for the Disabled Sportsperson of the Year award and is eligible for the supreme Halberg Award. Photo / Supplied

A good bevy of Northland athletes feature in the recent nominations for the 53rd edition of the Halberg Awards.

Leading the local charge, the 49er crew of Peter Burling and Kerikeri sailor Blair Tuke is up for the Microsoft Surface Team of the Year category.

However, they'll face some stiff competition for the coveted award, with the award being hotly contested by the World Cup winning All Blacks, the New Zealand Breakers, and the Black Caps.

Also flying the Northland flag, para-cyclist Emma Foy and her pilot Laura Thompson feature as a strong nomination in the Disabled Sportsperson of the Year category and will be up against another six athletes from five Para-Sports.

Tuke and Foy will also be eligible for the supreme Halberg Award - the country's highest accolade for sporting excellence.

The supreme award is presented to the athlete or team whose achievement is deemed by the judges as representing excellence in sport at the highest level and is currently defended by successful rowing pair Hamish Bond and Eric Murray.

Nominations have also been received for the SKY NEXT Emerging Talent of the Year Award, and includes Tai Wynyard, the son of Northland's seven-time world champion woodchopper Jason Wynyard.

The annual Halberg Awards is the major fundraiser for the Halberg Disability Sport Foundation, the charity set up by Olympic champion Sir Murray Halberg (ONZ) to enhance the lives of physically disabled New Zealanders.

"The Awards nominations represent another outstanding year of sporting achievements for New Zealand athletes and teams on the world stage," says Shelley McMeeken, chief executive of the Halberg Disability Sport Foundation.

Nominations will now go to the Halberg Awards judges which includes former athletes, coaches and sports journalists. The judges will review the achievements submitted to decide the finalists which will be announced in early January 2016.

Performances by athletes or teams that take place up until December 31 are eligible.