Valerie Adams has made the shortlist for the IAAF's female Athlete of the Year award. Photo / Getty
Defending champion Valerie Adams will head a team of five New Zealand athletes to compete in the world indoor athletics championships in Poland next month.
It's the largest team New Zealand has ever sent to a world indoor championships and will comprise two shot putters and three distance runners.
It
will be Adams' fifth world indoor campaign _ her first was in 2004 _ and she will be hot favourite to claim a third world indoor title in the women's shot put.
The 29-year-old will go into the championships in good form, having set a world's best mark of 20.19m for the year at last weekend's International Track Meet in Christchurch, which was her first competition since August. The double Olympic and four-time world champion also had knee and foot surgery in September.
Nick Willis (1500m) has competed previously but it will be the first world indoor championships for Lucy van Dalen (3000m), Tom Walsh (shot put) and Zane Robertson (3000m).
