Young sporting stars thank volunteers

About 100 volunteers were thanked at a Sport Bay of Plenty breakfast.

"Without volunteers I would not have been able to go to the places I have been or going to go," NZ basketball representative Bae Fountain told about 100 Bay sports volunteers yesterday.

The young sporting star joined fellow Mount Maunganui College students Shalom Broughton and Raiha Ensor as guest speakers at Sport Bay of Plenty's volunteer breakfast. Bae Fountain, 16, is the youngest player in the 13-man squad recently selected for the NZ senior men's water polo team.

Hesaid water polo had taken him all over the world and the country. "I have competed against Olympians and have had the chance to just show my all," he said.

He had also been selected in the youth men's team for volleyball and would be going to Florida and America these school holidays to compete.

"Without volunteers, I would not be able to do any of this," he said.

Raiha Ensor started surfing at age 7. "Being from the Mount it was probably a matter of time before I tried it and I fell in love with it instantly," she said.

The 17-year-old began surfing competitively at age 11. "Since then it has taken me throughout NZ for national competitions and throughout the world."

She competed in the World Junior Surfing Games last year and this year's World Open Surfing Games.

"That was my best result, I got ninth when I was over there a month ago in France," she said. "That is the result I am most proud of."

Miss Ensor was also going to Japan later this year for the World Junior Championships which she was fundraising for.

Her achievements would not have been possible without volunteers."I probably would not be surfing today if it was not for volunteers. I started competing through Bay Boardriders which is run by parents and members of the surfing community."

Miss Ensor thanked the volunteers for all their hard work and dedication to sport. Shalom Broughton, 15, represented the country in the NZ Basketball Under-16 team and was chosen as captain to lead the team to a transtasman tournament.

"I would not be here without the time and effort they [volunteers] have put in to me."

Western Bay of Plenty community sport adviser Zane Jensen said he was fortunate to be one of the 41,000 Kiwis employed in the sport and recreation sector.

"I get paid to work in my passion, and that is why I am guessing you guys are here because you love volunteering."

Mr Jensen said there were about 750,000 volunteers in New Zealand.

"In one year that equates to over 50 million hours that you guys put into sport. You can see the massive impact that you are having," he said.

About 26 per cent of the Bay's population volunteered in a sport.

Allen Robinson from Mount Lawn Bowls also attended the breakfast. He had been volunteering for about 55 years, the longest volunteer in the room.