HELPING OUR TOP SPORTSWOMEN ACHIEVE THEIR DREAMS

pages, you can read about the recent experiences of our students competing internationally. To compete on the world stage, they need to manage their demanding training schedules and absences from class, and Dio is happy to support this representative leave. Who knows – in a few years we might be cheering them on at a World Cup or a Commonwealth or Olympics Games.

Students who need to attend a lengthy training camp prior to leaving for their competitions, can enrol in te Kura (the Correspondence School) and the whole team at the camp works together on similar assessments. For others, Diocesan modifies their programme, creating a personalised timeline of topics and assessments. Because many of these students are eyeing up scholarships and places at overseas universities, it’s important to be able to maintain their grade point averages across their senior years. Diocesan staff are happy to support these athletes to achieve their dreams.

Dio pride is strong as two of our high-performing athletes prepare to showcase their skills on the global stage, representing New Zealand in artistic swimming and rock climbing.

Artistic swimmer has her sights set on the Olympics

Year 13 student Isabelle Hitchen has been selected for the Aquaferns Artistic Swimming team to represent New Zealand in July at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. This is also a qualifying event for the 2024 Paris Olympics and the team will be working hard to secure the Oceania spot.

Isabelle (17) was a gymnast from a young age, but switched sports and took up artistic swimming after she suffered a bad break to her arm when she was 10. She started competing on the national stage aged 12 and, a year later, was selected for the national Pikopiko Development Squad before being elevated to the Koru Squad for junior athletes.

The squad hasn’t been able to compete overseas for the past two years due to the COVID pandemic, but they have trained together under the tutelage of renowned choreographer and two-time Olympic champion Reem Abdalazem.

Isabelle will attend intensive training camps in Auckland and Tauranga before she leaves for Japan in early July, with the team training up to eight hours a day. They’ll be focusing on qualifying for three events at the world champs in Japan: Tech Team, Free Team and Acrobatic Team.

“Training and competing at this level has set me up for life,” Isabelle says. “It’s taught me how to perform well under pressure, and to trust myself and my teammates.

“We all work incredibly hard to make our performances look effortless, but there’s a lot of hard work and commitment behind it.”

Scaling global heights

Now 16, Rebecca Hounsell was just four years old when her father Grant first took her to an indoor climbing centre in Panmure. She quickly became hooked. At the time, Becca ’s mother was seriously ill and Grant says climbing became a refuge for Becca as the family navigated the challenges of terminal illness and subsequent loss. “Becca really blossomed as a climber,” says Grant. “It became her safe place psychologically.”

Becca is currently the New Zealand open female lead climbing champion, which involves climbing tall faces. She was recently selected to represent New Zealand at the World Climbing Championships in Koper, Slovenia in September. There, she’ll compete against around 200 international competitors, watched by a livestream audience of several hundred thousand.

She says climbing is all about problemsolving and working out the most strategic routes to climb.

“It’s about pushing yourself to your own limits,” explains Becca. “There are so many different types of climbing – it’s not all about scaling tall faces. You also get to see some pretty amazing scenery.

“I’m really looking forward to competing at the World Champs and gaining some international recognition and experience.”

As part of her training, Becca spent several weeks climbing at Milford Sound with climbers from around the country.

She continued her 2023 form in style at the recent National Indoor Bouldering Series in Dunedin, where she picked up another gold to add to her collection.

Becca also has her eye on competing at the Oceania Championships later this year, which could lead to possible Olympic selection. We are looking forward to following Rebecca’s progress throughout the year.

Congratulations to our other national reps

Soccer’s in her blood

Olivia Erskine (17) has been playing soccer since she was five and credits her soccer-mad father with stoking her interest in the game. Olivia, an attacking mid-fielder, was the youngest player to be selected for the School’s First XI at age 13 and is co-captain of the team this year.

She was selected for the National Secondary School Girls’ U-19 team to represent New Zealand at the fiveday Dallas International Football Cup tournament in the US in April this year. Thirty-two teams took part in the U-19 section of the tournament, including sides from Denmark, Sweden, Canada, Mexico and the US. Despite putting on a strong showing, the New Zealand team didn’t make it through to the knockout stage. The players ended their weeklong trip to the US with a 5-0 friendly win against an Arizona rep side, with Olivia scoring one of the goals.

“It was surreal to be wearing a fern on my shirt and playing with such talented girls,” says Olivia. “I soaked up every moment on the field and took on board all the feedback from the coaches.

“It was initially difficult to adapt to the direct mentality of the overseas teams, but we put up a good fight against them and came away with some good results.”

Olivia is also a keen tennis, netball and futsal player and hopes to study sports science and health and nutrition at university next year.

Underwater hockey

Congratulations to three of our Dio students, Rachael Griffiths (12SE), Mila

Hopwood-Craig (12RO) and Greer Newman (13CW) who have been selected for the New Zealand U-19 Underwater Hockey Squad for 2023.

The squad is working towards the World Championships, which are being held in Turkey in 2024 and a trans-Tasman tournament in September. Well done to Rachael, Mila and Greer on this amazing achievement. We wish you the best of luck in your preparations!

Water polo

Congratulations to Georgia Daly and Jenna Veal who have been selected into the New Zealand U-20 Water Polo Squad. They join old girls Sophie Gardiner, Sophie Shorter-Robinson, Bella Broadmore and Isabelle Jackson, and National U-17 Squad Dio reps Lia David, Lucy Gilleece, Sophia Jackson, Louise Masefield, Ellie Millard, Leni Webster and Vita Yarrell-Stevenson.

We did not know what we were in for on Friday 27 January. Following tradition, the Welcome Morning Tea and Picnic was set for the Friday of Anniversary Weekend. The RSVPs indicated we could expect a record number of attendees, but the weather forecast told us to batten down the hatches. Not wanting to disappoint the hundreds of new Dio girls and families eager to attend, we devised a rain plan and hosted our largest and most successful Welcome Day yet. With help from the wonderful O Catering, which has worked with us on our Welcome Picnic for three years, we brought together the school and students for a jubilant day, despite the weather. Proudly hosted by Parents and Friends, this event brings new students and their families to Dio before the start of the school year. We love the opportunity to meet new students and give families a chance to see the School and get to know one another.

A common reaction at the Welcome Picnic was one of surprise and excitement as returning students entered the Dio Café. Refurbishment is now complete, and the café looks stunning. Our goal was to create a space where Dio students want to be. With the help of Melissa Brady and the Dio Property Team, we succeeded. The new-look Dio Café is a beautiful, relaxing, urban space designed for the girls. Polished concrete floors, soothing tones of green, wooden tabletops and cozy corners create an atmosphere that could rival any Auckland café as the place to be for lunch.

Speaking of lunch, the café is busier than ever. Working with some amazing new suppliers, including Bowl and Arrow, OJI Sushi, and Krispy Kreme, the café offers students and staff a healthy lunch, a tasty snack or a sweet treat to keep them going through the day. We greatly appreciate our hardworking staff, the many Dio girls who volunteer, and our parent helpers. Anyone keen to volunteer or work in the café can email us on PFA@diocesan.school.nz

Term 2 kicked off with another record-breaking event, as we held our Father-Daughter Breakfast for almost 600 guests. Sergeant Steve Pike of the NZ Police, Police Dog Section, quickly got everyone’s attention as he introduced his colleagues and canines. We heard of the hard work these policemen, policewomen and dogs do to safeguard our community and learned about the specialised training and incredible efforts of the Police Dog Section of the police force. And yes, of course, there were puppies!

Food was catered by the exceptional WooZoo Group, working alongside Jadcup, to ensure a zero-waste event with compostable products and packaging. Atomic’s coffee was perfect, Leigh Hart kindly gave his time to MC, and we had a host of amazing sponsors donating to our raffle prizes and the overall event.

Following the success of the breakfast, we have started planning for our next event. We can’t wait to entertain the Dio community with a night to be remembered. So don’t miss out on what will be the party of the year. Ticket sales start in July through iTicket for our event in mid-October.

As always, if you’re keen to volunteer or would like more information, we encourage you to contact us at PFA@diocesan.school.nz