Solid hopes for medals at Sochi

Reporter·NZ Herald·

24 Jan, 2014 09:15 PM4 mins to read

Rebecca Sinclair is ranked No 12 in halfpipe. Photo / Getty Images

If a New Zealand athlete bags a medal at the Winter Olympics next month, it will have been a long time between drinks.

Annelise Coberger's silver medal in the slalom at Albertville in 1992 is New Zealand's lone success in the snow, but there are solid hopes she will no longer be alone once the Sochi Games have ended next month.

A team of 15 was named yesterday - 12 of whom are attending their first Olympics - and New Zealand's strength lies in the new disciplines of freeski and snowboarding slopestyle.

Four women are in the slopestyle, headed by world No7 Christy Prior from Kaukapakapa; four men are in the halfpipe event, three with the same surname.

Beau-James Wells is ranked 15th, Lyndon Sheehan 16th, Byron Wells 21st and big brother Jossi Wells 27th. Jossi and Beau-James are backing up in the slopestyle class.

It is the first time three siblings have competed for New Zealand at an Olympics.

Rebecca Sinclair, who competed at Vancouver four years ago, is ranked No12 in halfpipe; Anna Willcox is No9 in the freeski slopestyle rankings and a good chance, having sailed slightly under the radar in the leadup to the Games.

Jossi and Byron Wells have had injuries to cope with in their preparation, to heel and knee respectively.

For Jossi Wells, getting to a first Olympics, and with his brothers and father Bruce as coach, is "pretty amazing".

"It's a pretty unreal experience," he said while batting away issues over medal expectations.

"My main goal whenever I go to a contest is to do my very best and focus on that.

"I try not to let the pressures outside in my mind. But I'm aware of the pressure and expectations back home and try to use that to do my best."

A sobering note on New Zealand's medal aspirations came from Winter Sports high-performance boss Ashley Light.

"The variability of podium results over the last 18 months have seen 25 names on the podiums in some disciplines," he said.

"So we know while New Zealand certainly have athletes with potential and capable of winning medals, there's also a whole load of other athletes around the world who are capable.

"There's massive variability and that comes down to conditions, the health of the athletes, the features being built and whether they suit the athletes."

Besides Sinclair, the other two who have competed at a Games before are skeleton racer Ben Sandford, back for his third attempt, and speed skater Shane Dobbin.

There had been hopes Dobbin would have company in the form of Blake Skjellerup, but although he may have met New Zealand Olympic Committee standards, there was no quota spot available for New Zealand, so he misses out.

Adam Barwood ensured an alpine skiing presence with some decent form at the right time coming to the business end of the qualifying period.

Overshadowing the Games, however, is the spectre of Sochi being on terrorist alert.

It is an unsettled region politically but NZOC chief executive Kereyn Smith said yesterday the organisation was satisfied with the level of security in place.

"In terms of planning and delivery of safety and security for athletes, we're comfortable the Russian authorities and the IOC are working in a comprehensive manner," she said.

"We are taking advice from government agencies and their international partners.

"Athletes' security and safety is absolutely paramount."

New Zealand's team for the Winter Olympics, Sochi, Feb 7-23

Freeskiing

• Men's slopestyle: Jossi Wells (Wanaka), Beau-James Wells (Wanaka)

• Men's halfpipe: Jossi Wells, Beau-James Wells, Byron Wells (Wanaka), Lyndon Sheehan (Wanaka)

• Women's halfpipe: Janina Kuzma (Wanaka)

• Women's slopestyle: Anna Willcox (North Shore)

Snowboarding

• Women's slopestyle: Christy Prior (Helensville), Steffi Luxton (Wanaka), Shelly Gotlieb (Ohakune), Rebecca Torr (Te Puke)

• Women's halfpipe: Rebecca Sinclair (Wanaka)

• Skating, long track: Shane Dobbin (Gold Coast)