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Ōtorohanga resident describes dramatic rescue from floodwaters

Source: Radio New Zealand

Flooding on Kio Kio Station Road, where residents were evacuated overnight. Supplied / Colin Payne

An Ōtorohanga resident has described his dramatic and unexpected rescue in the early hours of Saturday morning, after he awoke to find himself waist-deep in floodwater.

A state of emergency was declared in the district at 1am.

Kio Kio Station Road resident Colin Payne said waters close to three metres high had come through his property overnight.

The octogenarian had woken at about 4:30am to find his bedroom sodden.

“That had come in at, well, when I went to bed about 10 last night, it wasn’t even up to my barn, but it must have come up over the last four hours, four to five hours after that,” he said.

“I have an American barn and then attached to the American barn is a cottage and that is another metre higher than the American barn. So the actual increase in the water from the road to the top is approximately two-and-a-half to three metres.”

Payne called a neighbour and found out other residents on the rural road had woken to similar circumstances.

“Well, I must admit I was floundering for a few minutes until I found a torch because the power was off, and I then rang one of my neighbours and she thought I was away, so she hadn’t done anything, genuinely. And then I found out that they’d been rescuing people for a good hour or so.”

Like many of his neighbours, he was rescued soon after, using a boat that had been brought from Rotorua, and wading barefoot through water.

“They had to come around the front of my property and we had to remove a very large polythene screen so that we could get in and they brought the boat right onto the deck and then two or three of them helped me into it.”

Flooding on Kio Kio Station Road, where residents were evacuated overnight. Supplied / Colin Payne

The only thing Payne managed to take with him was his medication – everything else in his home is likely a write-off, he said.

“Totally and utterly devastated. It was more than wet. There was two big fridges, freezers rather, just floating. My TVs are all floating and the annoying part about it is I couldn’t reach it, but as I opened the door, my wallet floated past with all my credit cards and my driver’s licence and everything in it. So I hope the cops will be understanding if I get pulled up for a ticket.”

That was unlikely, as his large campervan had been “totally submerged”.

Kio Kio Station Road was about 3-4 kilometres long and had a number of lifestyle properties dotted along it, Payne said, estimating about 250 people would have needed rescuing.

“I would say some of them have even been worse than my place, and believe me, I’m pretty bad at my place, but I would say everybody else has suffered as badly as what I have,” he said.

“There’s little wee babies that have been hugging into their mums, there’s four families with young children right next door to me, and they’ve all been rescued. And I’ve spoken to quite a few of the others up and down and everybody’s feeling the same as what I am, you know, pretty devastated by what’s occurred. And you know, it is devastating and you can’t do a damn thing about it.”

Flooding on Kio Kio Station Road, where residents were evacuated overnight. Supplied / Colin Payne

Meanwhile, the deluge of rain continues.

“The thunder and lightning is still occurring, but the rain is, it’s very, very heavy and I don’t think we’re going to see any let up for two or three hours, maybe even longer. But yes, it’s torrential rain and it’s just about continuous torrential rain.”

Payne is no stranger to flooding, having been a jet boat rescuer himself in the 60s and 70s, and he commended those working overnight.

But now that the shock was wearing off, the last few hours were beginning to take a toll.

He was also concerned about his pet goat, Sophie.

“My greatest concern is for my dear little goat, Sophie. I just hope that Sophie has managed to get herself elevated somehow… most of the locals around my way know Sophie. In fact, quite a few of the locals come up and feed Sophie. She loves silverbeet, but I don’t think she’ll be getting any silverbeet today.”

Campers evacuated

A group of campers were evacuated from a campground amid the flooding, slips and heavy rain in Ōtorohanga overnight.

Joy Wickham told RNZ she was with a group of NZ Motor Home Association members who parked for the night at Ōtorohanga College on Friday.

The school is next to a river, and the waters rose up and into the school grounds, prompting the evacuation, Wickham said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Man dies after car submerged in floodwaters in Waikato

Source: Radio New Zealand

A man has died after his car was submerged in floodwaters on State Highway 39. Screenshot/Google Maps

A man has died after his vehicle became submerged in floodwaters while travelling on State Highway 39 at Puketotara on Friday night.

A member of the public alerted emergency services at about 9.15pm.

The car was submerged near the intersection of State Highway 39 and Kiwi Road at Puketotara, and the man was found deceased inside the vehicle, police said.

State Highway 39 remains closed.

Motorists have been warned to drive with extreme caution and not attempt to drive through flooded roads.

A number of local roads and highways are shut across the district, including:

  • State Highway 39, between Otorohanga and Pirongia
  • State Highway 3 between Mangaorongo Road and Ngahape Road.
  • Kiokio Station Road at Otorohanga.
  • Phillips Road at Otorohanga.

A local State of Emergency has been declared for Ōtorohanga.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Cam Melville Ives misses snowboard halfpipe medals

Source: Radio New Zealand

Cam Melville Ives at the 2026 Winter Olympics. www.photosport.nz

First time Olympian Cam Melville Ives struggled to complete his runs in the snowboard halfpipe final and finished in 12th place at Livingo Snow Park.

The Wanaka rider qualified in eighth for the Winter Olympics final but was among the athletes that could not put down clean runs on Saturday.

Melville Ives’ first run score of 43, which included a backside double-cork alley-oop and a frontside triple cork 1440, was his best result from his three runs.

The halfpipe was the 19-year-old’s only event of the Milano Cortina Games.

Japanese athletes dominated the early runs in the halfpipe final with a trio of riders scoring in the 90s on their first attempts, before Australia’s Scotty James broke into the top positions on his second run.

Team Japan’s 24-year-old Yuto Totsuka won the gold medal in his third Olympics, secured with a 95.00 scored in his second run. James was unable to improve on his final run to finish with back-to-back silver medals in his fifth Olympic appearance.

Japan’s 19-year-old Ryusei Yamada finished with the bronze medal in his first Olympic Games.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Body recovered from submerged vehicle, SH39

Source: New Zealand Police

A man has died after his vehicle became submerged in floodwaters while travelling on State Highway 39 overnight.

A member of public alerted emergency services to the submerged car, near the intersection with Kiwi Road at Puketotara, about 9.15pm.

Sadly, one person was located deceased inside the vehicle.

State Highway 39 remains closed.

Anyone travelling in the Waikato District is urged to take care and should not attempt to cross flooded roads. 

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre

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Police urge caution on roads following heavy rain

Source: New Zealand Police

Motorists in the Waikato are being warned to drive with extreme caution and not attempt to drive through flooded roads.

A number of local roads and highways are shut across the district, including:

  • State Highway 39, between Otorohanga and Pirongia.
  • State Highway 3 between Mangaorongo Road and Ngahape Road.
  • Kiokio Station Road at Otorohanga.
  • Phillips Road at Otorohanga.

If you must travel, please slow down and be prepared for surface flooding or obstructions on road. Anyone travelling should check NZTA’s Journey Planner website for the latest highway conditions, and local council Facebook pages.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre

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Road closed, Old Coach Road, Gore

Source: New Zealand Police

Old Coach Road, between Kaiwera Downs Road and Isla Road, is closed following a two-vehicle crash.

The crash, involving a car and a truck and trailer unit, was reported to emergency services about 6am.

Police are in attendance and diversions are in place.

Three people are reported to be injured.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre.

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‘It’s hard to get healthy kai when you don’t have healthy whenua’

Source: Radio New Zealand

Dr Madeline Shelling (Ngāti Porou) from the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland. Supplied/Madeline Shelling

A new study has linked food insecurity experienced by Māori to the ongoing consequence of colonisation rather than the result of individual choice or lifestyle.

The study, led by postdoctoral health researcher Dr Madeline Shelling (Ngāti Porou) from the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland draws on in-depth interviews with Māori kai experts.

It documents how land loss, environmental degradation, restrictive laws and the marginalisation of mātauranga Māori have dismantled Māori food systems across generations.

Shelling said the research began with a visit to her whānau in Te Araroa, where despite the community taking pride in the food they could source from the land they were still counted as being food insecure.

“It came out quite clearly in my PhD that the way that we assess kai security or food security in Aotearoa is not representing Māori values, traditions or knowledge because it’s a questionnaire made up of eight questions that are all related to how we access food by having money and obviously in te ao Māori and many indigenous cultures around the world, having money is not the only way that you access kai, and it never has been.”

The outcomes of food insecurity in Aotearoa, as a wealthy, settler colonial nation, are expressed in obesity, diabetes and non-communicable and diet-related diseases which come with stigma, she said.

“Having great access to bad food is a problem that is faced by indigenous people in settler colonised countries all over the world it’s a very common pattern and yet individual choice is still blamed and so I’m just really passionate about moving away from that stigma that there is a choice because there often is very little choice.

“What if fish and chips is the only option in your area that you can access? What if you work two jobs and you don’t have transport and the only place you can walk to is McDonald’s?

“People who have the privilege of choice don’t understand what it’s like to not have that choice.”

Shelling said reducing food insecurity to individual choice ignores systemic issues faced by people in lower socio-economic areas and it excludes people who have experienced colonisation.

“Colonisation is such an important determinant of food insecurity and it has to be acknowledged so that we can remove some of these stigmas about individuals having choice over their food, when really their environment, their intergenerational trauma, their lack of intergenerational wealth through colonisation has all contributed to their inability to choose certain types of food and particularly healthy foods.”

The study identified four key impacts of colonisation, loss of land, erosion of rangatiratanga, marginalisation of Māori knowledge and impacts on health.

“It’s hard to get healthy kai when you don’t have healthy whenua that you can access,” Shelling said.

To solve the problems of food insecurity there is a responsibility from the top down to implement policy and there’s also from the bottom up, what whānau decide to do day to day and what they are able to do, because for a lot of whānau choosing where to buy food is not an option, she said.

“I want to make it really clear that Māori are trying to do something about it and Māori don’t want to be reliant on fast foods and takeaways.

“If we truly understood how colonisation impacted our food systems, we would not call it playing the victim it’s about understanding truly the effects of colonisation on every aspect of our life and for my research in particular on food systems and then where do we go from there and that’s a responsibility that we have for tangata tiriti and tangata whenua for doing it from the top down and the bottom up.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Country Life: Growing a farmer on Pāmu’s apprentice scheme

Source: Radio New Zealand

Pāmu apprentice Archie Davidson and Te Wharua farm manager Alan Micky MacDonald RNZ/Sally Round

Apprentice farmer Archie Davidson is learning a thing or two from his dogs.

“That heading dog, he knows everything.

“You send him one way; he goes the other way.

“He’s like, uh-uh, and I’m like, ‘Oh, should have sent you that way’.”

Seventeen-year-old Archie is in his second year on the three-year Pāmu apprenticeship scheme finding his feet at Te Wharua Station, a 1900-hectare sheep and beef farm in central King Country.

Sky, his heading dog, and Grace, his huntaway, are invaluable tools for mustering sheep on the steep hill country.

“[They] teach me patience, teach me how sheep move, sheep flow.”

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Archie with two of his dogs RNZ/Sally Round

He jumps in the side-by-side and heads off up a steep track with me alongside.

The sheep are due for dagging the next day and Archie needs to bring them down from the tops to a paddock closer to the yards.

He’s on a shepherd’s wage now, after learning the basics – on training pay – with the other apprentices at the scheme’s headquarters in Taupo.

Archie got a place on the first intake of the scheme which started in January 2025. Up to nine school leavers earn while they learn and don’t need any prior experience farming.

In their first year, as well as learning the basics of dairying and livestock farming, they do some academic study with the aim of gaining Level 3 and 4 agricultural papers.

Apprentices on Pāmu’s apprenticeship scheme Abby Dance-The Photographer

In the second year they move into an apprentice’s job at one of Pāmu’s farms around the country while they continue their studies.

The son of dairy farmers, Archie decided to move onto Te Wharua, under the wing of farm manager Alan “Micky” MacDonald.

The teen did OK at school but loves the “hands on” nature of on-farm learning.

“I like being out in the hills and there’s hunting on your doorstep.”

Archie watches the muster from a hiiltop RNZ/Sally Round

He’s in and out of the side-by-side, his whistle clenched between his lips, practising the signals which direct the dogs to bring the sheep out of some tricky gullies.

Micky, waiting down below, says it’s important to have the apprentices do valuable jobs on the farm.

“It’s trying to keep it interesting, but it does take time, and sometimes you could do it faster, but then you think, well, these are the future, so give them the space and the time.”

Te Wharua, with its hilly back country and more forgiving finishing paddocks, covers a fair bit for an apprentice, Micky told Country Life.

“If someone does a good stint here and picks up a school level and all those aspects of it, they’re ready to go farming anywhere, really.”

His biggest concern with the cadets is on-farm safety, particularly with Te Wharua’s terrain.

“I sort of try and work them into it, you know, without putting them in a situation where they’re scared or out of their depth.

“We keep them pretty close to one of the team for a bit to see where their skill level’s at, and then we try and build on that while they’re here.”

Archie’s dogs ready for action RNZ/Sally Round

Pastoral care is part of his job too, encouraging the apprentices to get off farm during their time off, and keeping them focused.

“I just straighten them up if they need it, or just talk to them, as I would expect from anyone else.

“They accept it and learn from it and go forward.”

The sheep are safely mustered and in the paddock, ready for dagging tomorrow.

Archie’s looking forward to shearing time and learning more from Micky, a champion in his day.

While the dogs take a break, Micky gives Archie some final instructions, with a bit of banter thrown in.

The partnership is one of the reasons Archie chose this farm for his placement.

“Me and Micky got along well.”

“I liked him from the from the word go,” Micky says about Archie.

“He came here with a good attitude, and he had all the things I like, in a young person, cheeky smile, and, you know, very good work ethic and respectful.

“And there’s some poor old bugger that did that for me once, so it’s my turn now to give it back.”

Learn more:

  • Learn more about Pāmu’s apprenticeship scheme here (PDF)

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Country Life: Behind the scenes of Central Otago’s cherry harvest

Source: Radio New Zealand

Clyde Orchards has been owned and operated by the Paulin family since 1921. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

In the weeks before Chinese New Year, Clyde Orchard’s packhouse is a hive of activity as rich, red cherries freshly picked from surrounding Central Otago orchards are brought in to be washed, packed and prepped – ready for export.

The auspicious colouring of the sweet stone fruits – shades of deep plum and ruby jewels – makes it a sought after treat to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

“We’re now packing fruit today that was picked this morning,” explained Kris Robb, the manager of Clyde Orchards headquartered in Earnscleugh.

“We want to keep the cherries fresh, we want to keep the stalks fresh, and we want to really maintain that crispness of the fruit before it gets into the cool store.”

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Clyde Orchards is a family business, started by the Paulin family in 1921.

Today it’s run by third-generation brothers Kevin and Raymond “Musso”, with the next generation also starting to come on board.

The orchards total over 105-hectares on three different sites throughout Central Otago – the Earnscleugh blocks, some in Bannockburn near Cromwell and another in Bendigo.

Robb explained the orchard is “reasonably unique” in that it grows, packs, exports and markets all its own fruit.

“That vertical integration for us is probably a real driver of the success of the business, and the viability of it going forward. It really means that we’re in charge of our own destiny.

“We’re focusing on high-end niche products [so] that we are able to control how it’s grown and when it’s packed, how it’s packed, and how it’s sold.”

Clyde Orchards general manager Kris Robb. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

Clyde Orchards has a number of different orchards throughout Central Otago. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

Clyde Orchards also grows a range of flat peaches known as flattos. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

With hot, dry summers and cold winters, Central Otago is a region of extremes. It also makes it ideal for growing summer fruit varities.

“The trees need those cooler temperatures in the winter – it’s called winter chilling – and they need a certain amount of hours, the lowest degrees for them to know that it’s time to wake up again when the spring comes,” Robb told Country Life.

“Then that hot, dry summer helps us with pest and disease control, but it also assists with those flavours of the fruit that everyone loves, you know, those juicy, sweet flavours come out with the heat.”

The “core business” is cherries and flat peaches, he says.

Clyde Orchards grows about 10 different types of cherries across half its orchards, which means the harvest period runs for about 8 weeks starting in mid-December. These are largely destined for export, markets such as Taiwan, China, Malaysia and Singapore.

Clyde Orchards is also the only commercial grower, packer and distributor of flat peaches, or flattos, in New Zealand.

Many of the cherries will be destine for export markets ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year period. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

At the peak harvest period, Clyde Orchards has about 150 staff working – picking and packing. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

Technology helps ensure the quality of the fruit being picked. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

Central Otago’s wet summer has made for a challenging growing season this year and delayed the cherry harvest by a week or so.

Robb says it’s more important to allow the fruit to mature properly and pick when it’s at it’s best rather than rush the process.

It’s not quite been the harvest they hoped for, with volumes down, but it’s far from a disaster and they are now turning their attention to bringing in the peaches.

Key to the harvest is the more than 150 staff who help pick and pack the produce.

The team uses Hydralada Platforms to pick cherries. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

The team comprises locals ranging in age from high schoolers to retirees, backpackers from around the globe, and 20 ni-Vanuatu, who are part of the Recognised Seasonal Employer, or RSE, programme.

Clyde Orchards has been involved with the programme since its inception in 2007.

It is a grower-initiated scheme to fill the shortfall of available labour in the horticulture and viticulture sectors and is also aimed at supporting economic development in the Pacific region.

Many of the workers at Clyde Orchards have been coming for almost 20 years.

Robb says they’re “very, very efficient”, averaging about 50-odd buckets a day. The team of five picking cherries in the orchard today, harvest as much as 15 or even 20 new pickers, he told Country Life.

“It’s great to have them here.”

Clyde Orchards has opened its new 10-room accommodation for the RSE team, inspired by a traditional Vanuatuan meeting house. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

Mike, a ni-Van RSE worker, has been coming to Clyde Orchards from Vanuatu for almost 20 years. Gianina Schwanecke / Country Life

This season Clyde Orchards opened a new 10-room accommodation unit for the RSE team, inspired by a traditional Vanuatuan meeting house.

For RSE workers like Mike Mangau it is an opportunity to support those on his home island of Tanna.

“When we earn money here, it’s good to take something back home.”

Mike has invested the money earned in a coffee plantation and beekeeping business, as well as building a local kindergarten.

It can be hard being away from home for so long though – he arrived in October and will stay through the harvest period until May.

“It’s good to come over here and help somebody to help our communities and some other things.”

Learn more:

  • Find out more about Clyde Orchards and what they’re growing here

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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New Zealand SailGP: What you need to know

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand SailGP

4pm Saturday, 14 February

11.30am Sunday, 15 February*

Wynyard Point, Auckland

Live updates on RNZ

*Start time has been change for the weather

Amid considerable fanfare, SailGP has returned to Auckland, building on a wildly successful – not for the home team though – debut in 2025.

The wait for availability of the Wynyard Point site proved well worthwhile, when spectators crammed the giant grandstand on the waterfront to watch Australia claim honours last year – and organisers promise bigger and better this time round.

Here’s what you should know about the professional sailing event.

History

Sail Grand Prix was created in 2018 by billionaire Larry Ellison and Kiwi sailing legend Sir Russell Coutts, loosely based on the America’s Cup, where both its founders originated from.

Unlike the ‘Auld Mug’, this format was designed for high-speed racing in identical F50 catamarans around spectator-friendly courses near the shoreline.

Black Foils win a race at 2025 New Zealand SailGP on the Waitematā Harbour. Felix Diemer for SailGP

Many of the crews are also involved in the America’s Cup, so this event enables them to remain fully professional sailors between four-year cycles, albeit in a different class of boat.

The fleet began with just six teams, but has since doubled in size, with the addition of Brazil and Italy last year, before adding Sweden as the 13th entry for 2026.

Guided by Tom Slingsby, Australia have dominated the league, winning the first three editions and finishing runners-up in the last two. Spain were 2023/24 champions, while Great Britain triumphed in 2024/25.

Another feature of the competition is known as the ‘Impact League’, which rewards teams for promoting sustainability and inclusivity within their organisations. Winning teams receive prizemoney to donate to charities and New Zealand took 2021/22 honours.

Format

Each regatta takes place over a series of tightly contested fleet races (up to seven) across two days, with teams gaining points based on their placings and the top three qualifying for the final at the end of the weekend.

Overall results from each stopover count towards season rankings, with the top three again qualifying for the series final.

Black Foils

New Zealand did not contest the inaugural SailGP series, but joined the fleet in 2020, under the leadership of America’s Cup supremo Peter Burling and sidekick Blair Tuke.

New Zealand celebrate victory at Portsmouth 2025. Kieran Cleeves for SailGP

Their distinctive boat Amokura was launched the following year and has suffered several accidents since.

In 2023, its mast was struck by lightning in Singapore, as it was being towed back to base, frying its electrical systems. The NZ crew were already ashore, collecting their winners’ prize, but Danish grinder Martin Kirketerp – who was helping return the boat to port – was taken to hospital with an electric shock.

Later that same season, Amokura’s wing collapsed while racing at Saint-Tropez. No-one was hurt, but the damage was too serious to continue racing and repairs could not be carried out before the next round at Taranto, Italy.

In March 2024, the NZ team announced their ‘Black Foils’ nickname, aligning with other famous Kiwi sporting outfits.

Burling and Tuke have won Olympic and world championship gold, won and defended the America’s Cup and sailed around the world (separately), but SailGP success has eluded them. They finished second in 2022/23 and third the last two years.

Form

The 2026 series has had only one stop so far, at Perth, with the defending champion British team picking up where they left off last year, heading off Australia and France in the event final.

Sweden won two of the seven preliminary races, but finished last in the seventh to place fourth, while Canada also showed their ability with victory in the last race.

New Zealand were off to the worst-possible start to their campaign, damaging their stern in a collision with Switzerland during the opening race and, while the Swiss were able to return to the water on the second day, the Kiwis were shorebound for the rest of the weekend and faced some time pressure to repair their board for the Auckland leg.

They are now at the bottom of the table with no points, alongside Switzerland and Spain, who also suffered malfunctions off Perth.

Great Britain claim victory off Perth in January. James Gourley for SailGP

New Zealand SailGP

New Zealand was originally included on the 2021/22 championship schedule, with Lyttelton Harbour, Christchurch, as the venue on an alternating arrangement with Auckland’s Wynyard Point.

Covid-19 delayed the NZ stopover until 2023, with Christchurch hosting the very successful event, and it returned there the following year, when the Auckland waterfront site was unavailable.

This time, racing was not possible on the opening day, due to dolphins on the course, and Coutts vowed not to use the venue again.

Instead, Auckland staged the 2025 event, fully justifying the decision to develop Wynyard Point, with a grandstand that is expected to hold more than 10,000 spectators and break the SailGP attendance record, along with unticketed viewing along the shoreline.

Kiwi Phil Robertson skippered Canada to victory at the inaugural 2023 NZ SailGP, Burling steered the Kiwis home in 2024, but the Black Foils struck electrical problems at Auckland, with the Aussies dominating the weekend.

Sir Russell Coutts makes the decision to cancel racing at Lyttelton 2024, as dolphins invade the racecourse. Chloe Knott for SailGP

Teams

Australia: Tom Slingsby (driver), Tash Bryant (strategist), Nina Curtis (strategist), Iain Jensen (wing trimmer), Kinley Fowler (flight controller/grinder), Sam Newton (grinder), Jason Waterhouse (flight controller/tactician), Tom Needham (reserve)

Brazil: Martine Grael (driver), Marco Grael (grinder), Mateus Isaac (grinder), Rasmus Kostner (flight controller), Pietro Sibello (wing trimmer), Paul Goodison (strategist), Richard Mason (reserve), Breno Kneipp (grinder)

Canada: Giles Scott (driver), Billy Gooderham (flight controller), Paul Campbell-James (wing trimmer), Annie Haeger (strategist), Georgia Lewin-LaFrance (strategist), Tom Ramshaw (grinder), Tim Hornsby (grinder/technical director), Alex Sinclair (grinder)

Denmark: Nicolai Sehested (driver), Tom Johnson (wing trimmer), Ed Powys (flight controller), Anee-Marie Rindom (strategist), Hans-Christian Rosendahl (grinder), Luke Payne (grinder), Kahena Kunze (strategist)

France: Quentin Delapierre (driver), Manon Audinet (strategist), Leigh McMillan (wing trimmer), Jason Saunders (flight controller), Olivier Herledant (grinder), Bruno Mourniac (grinder), Timothy Lapauw (grinder), Enzo Balanger (reserve), Amelie Riou (reserve)

Germany: Erik Kosegarten-Heil (driver), Kevin Peponnet (wing trimmer), James Wierzbowski (flight controller), Anna Barth (strategist), Will Tiller (grinder), Linov Scheel (grinder)

Great Britain: Dylan Fletcher (driver), Hannah Mills (strategist), Stuart Bithell (wing trimmer), Luke Parkinson (flight controller),, Nick Hutton (trimmer/grinder), Neil Hunter (grinder), Kai Hockley (development), Ben Cornish (reserve), Ellie Aldridge (development)

Italy: Phil Robertson (driver), Ruggero Tita (alternate driver), Kyle Langford (wing trimmer), Andrea Tesei (flight controller), Will Ryan (grinder), Enrico Voltolini (grinder), Jana Germani (strategist), Maelle Frascari (strategist), Jimmy Spithill (reserve driver)

Australia celebrate their 2025 victory at New Zealand SailGP. Brett Phibbs for SailGP

New Zealand: Peter Burling (driver), Blair Tuke (wing trimmer), Leo Takahashi (flight controller), Liv Mackay (strategist), Louis Sinclair (grinder), Marcus Hansen (grinder)

Spain: Diego Botin (driver), Florian Trittel (wing trimmer), Joel Rodriguez (flight controller), Nicolle van der Velden (strategist), Joan Cardona (tactician/grinder), Bernard Freitas (grinder), Matthew Barber (grinder)

Sweden: Nathan Outteridge (driver), Julia Gross (strategist), Chris Draper (wing trimmer), Any Maloney (flight controller), Brad Farrand (wing trimmer), Julius Hallstrom (grinder)

Switzerland: Sebastian Schneiter (driver), Arnaud Psarofaghis (wing trimmer), Bryan Mattraux (flight controller), Stewart Dodson (grinder), Arno de Planta (reserve), Maud Jayet (strategist), Matt Gotrel (grinder)

USA: Taylor Canfield (driver), Michael Menninger (wing trimmer), Hans Henken (flight controller), Andrew Campbell (strategist), Anna Weis (grinder), Peter Kinney (grinder), Mac Agnese (grinder), Harry Melges IV (reserve)

Weather

In a case of imperfect timing, New Zealand’s North Island – including Auckland – is under storm warning this weekend, which has already forced a couple of changes to event scheduling.

Friday practice racing was cancelled, with only New Zealand, Spain and Germany allowed out on the water to test their recent modifications before racing begins in earnest.

In anticipation of worsening conditions on Sunday afternoon, the second day’s racing has been brought forward to 11.30am.

Everyone is talking glowingly of great sailing conditions, but maybe not so great for spectators.

Asked about the expected big winds, Auckland-born Italy driver Phil Robertson replied: “You wet your pants a little and you move on.”

Where to watch

Organisers have increased the size of the already impressive Wynyard Point grandstand by 30 percent to more than 10,000 seats. Boats will whistle past so close, you can almost reach out and touch them.

Other vantage points around the harbour include any of the wharves as far as Bledisloe Wharf on the city side, Westhaven Marina and Stanley Point on the North Shore.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand