New Zealand to send largest team ever to Winter Olympics

By Published On: January 25th, 2006Comments Off on New Zealand to send largest team ever to Winter Olympics

New Zealand to send largest team ever to Winter Olympics{mosimage}WELLINGTON, New Zealand – New Zealand will send 18 competitors, its largest team ever, to the Winter Olympics in Torino next month, the New Zealand Olympic Committee said Wednesday.

New Zealanders will compete in curling, skiing, snowboarding, skeleton and bobsleigh events, increasing their representation from 11 athletes at Salt Lake City in 2002.

The team was increased Wednesday with the addition of skeleton racers Ben Sandford and Louise Corcoran and a bobsleigh team of Alan Henderson, Matt Dallow, Stephen Harrison, Aaron Orangi and Angus Ross that will compete in two-man and four-man events.

Henderson and Ross will be attending their third straight games while Dallow and Harrison also competed in Salt Lake four years ago.

The curling team, which qualified for the games by finishing eighth at the 2005 World Championships, may be New Zealand’s main medal hope.

Snowboarder Juliane Bray finished second in a World Cup halfpipe event in Switzerland this month, giving New Zealand its first podium finish at that level.

The New Zealand team:
Curling: Sean Becker, Lorne de Pape, Hans Frauenlob, Dan Mustapic, Warren Dobson
Alpine skiing: Mickey Ross, Nicola Campbell, Erika McLeod.
Snowboarding: Juliane Bray, Kendall Brown, Mitchell Brown.
Skeleton: Ben Sandford, Louise Corcoran.
Bobsleigh: Alan Henderson, Matt Dallow, Stephen Harrison, Aaron Orangi, Angus Ross.

– The Associated Press

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About the Author: Pete Rugh