KEY POINTS:
Richard Tonks will remain at the helm of the Rowing New Zealand coaching regime after extending his contract for another four years, taking in the London Olympics.
But the search for a chief executive to replace Craig Ross continues.
RNZ said Luke van Velthooven had been appointed interim chief executive officer, and Judith Hamilton as interim high-performance manager.
High-performance manager Andrew Matheson resigned after the Beijing Olympics to join Rowing Australia in a similar role.
RNZ chairman Bill Falconer said efforts to recruit a chief executive had failed to produce a candidate who met all of the organisation's requirements, or who was able to move to headquarters at Karapiro, in the Waikato.
"We have decided to start the search process afresh," Falconer said.
Van Velthooven was one of the preferred candidates when RNZ recruited Ross, Falconer said. "We are fortunate that he has been able to organise his affairs to take on this role."
He has been given the job of producing rowing's strategic plan through to the London Olympics, particularly a plan for securing funding for the retention of elite rowers.
He will also work on the staging and raising of funds for the 2010 world championships which will be hosted by New Zealand.
Tonks has been New Zealand's most successful international coach.
His retention has cemented one of the cornerstones of RNZ's high-performance programme through to London and for the 2010 worlds.
Ross was convicted in July on nine charges of knowingly using forged documents to gain almost $370,000 worth of charitable grants for RNZ.
This month, Justice Paul Heath overturned the fraud convictions, set aside the $10,000 in fines, but ordered Ross to pay $15,000 towards prosecution costs.
- NZPA
