Triathlon NZ look for Maw success

Triathlon New Zealand believe they have scored something of a coup with the appointment of Graeme Maw as high performance director.

Maw was high performance director at British Triathlon between 2001 and 2006, when they had two world champions and won 28 world, European and Commonwealth medals in six seasons. His appointment is the first significant step following an independent review into the Tri NZ high performance programme.

Maw has been director of sport at Millfield School in Somerset - the UK's pre-eminent school for sport - since 2009 but also has a number of other significant entries on his CV. He has also been Welsh Rugby Union elite performance director, high performance manager swimming at the Queensland Academy of Sport and Triathlon England board member (2010-12).

During that time, Maw was responsible for the development of a UK-wide high performance network supported by professional coaches and backed-up by expert support services.

"The creation of this new role is an important recommendation to come out of the Independent Review," Tri NZ chief executive Craig Waugh said. "So much of the work and planning that will follow will be driven by the high performance director and head coach as we set the tone and changes required for success over the next eight-10 years.

"The quality of applicants was superb, a reflection of the high regard in which Triathlon New Zealand and our athletes are held worldwide. But Graeme Maw stood out in the global search and was our preferred choice.

"We are delighted to have secured his services. His experience and CV are simply outstanding. Graeme brings a wealth of knowledge from a variety of countries and sports and will lead our high performance programme with a clear focus and vision."

Maw will arrive in New Zealand in November and start work in December.

"I cannot wait to get to work with Tri NZ," he said. "I watched as Hamish [Carter] and Bevan [Docherty] went one-two in Athens, I saw Sam Warriner medal at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games and have followed Andrea Hewitt's outstanding form these past few years. I hired [New Zealander] Ben Bright to work as a coach and roomed with a Coast-to-Coast medallist during university and I recognise the same tenacity in all of them.

"I relish bringing people together to achieve a collective goal, and believe in coaching and coach development. I'm certainly looking forward to working with the team to progress New Zealand's triathlon legacy."