Two of the sport’s leading figures over many years, Ruth Aitken and Waimarama Taumaunu have received Netball New Zealand Life Membership in recognition of the immense contribution they have made.
Stalwarts, who have made invaluable contributions from grassroots to the international stage in a lifetime’s involvement, the pair has traversed many facets of the game while leaving a significant imprint in being awarded NNZ’s highest honour.
Aitken forged an outstanding career as a coach after being a successful member of the Silver Ferns team that were joint winners of the 1979 World Netball Championships.
Over her nine-year tenure (2002 – 2011) as the Silver Ferns coach, Aitken stood out as one of New Zealand’s most successful coaches across all sports. With Aitken at the helm, the Silver Ferns won the 2003 World Netball Championships, culminating in the Coach of the Year Award the same year, back-to-back gold medals at the 2006 Melbourne and 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games and the World Netball Series title in 2009.
Employed as the NNZ Coaching Director from 2011 – 2013, Aitken led the successful development and promotion of new initiatives to encourage increased participation at all levels of coaching.
From 2013 – 2016, Aitken was Technical Director and National Coach for Singapore Netball where she played an instrumental role in shaping the success and development of the Singapore national team.
Since 2017, she has played an important role as Development Officer for the Pacific Sporting Programme, a programme that delivers Netball training to a wide range of participants in Fiji, the Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga.
Her knowledge and experience have been recognised both nationally and internationally as a member of the INF Coaching Advisory Panel (2011 – 2014) and since 2016 has been a member of the NZ Sports Tribunal, an independent body that rules on a range of sporting disputes.
More recently, Aitken has been employed as Performance Manager in the Waikato Bay of Plenty Zone. Aitken received the NNZ Service Award in 2012 and was made an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit (ONZM) in 2011 for her services to Netball.
Taumaunu has had a long and distinguished career in Netball as a player, coach and administrator.
Selected in the Silver Ferns as an 18-year-old, Taumaunu went on to forge an outstanding 10-year international career. Captaining the Silver Ferns in her last three, years, Taumaunu played 77 tests, winning a world title in 1987 while being acclaimed as one of the outstanding defenders of her generation.
When offshore appointments were a rarity, Taumaunu was appointed National Performance Director of England Netball in 1998 and held this position until she returned to New Zealand in 2003.
Taumaunu was the Silver Ferns head coach from 2011 – 2015 during which time she continued to undertake a range of administrative roles in high performance and strategic planning for the national body.
Since 2016, Taumaunu has been Director of High Performance for the Central Zone as well as leading the NNZ team responsible for developing the Pacific Sporting Partnership in conjunction with NZ Rugby and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
More recently, Taumaunu has been responsible for establishing a coaching qualification framework, designed to fast-track coaches who have experience of high-performance sport through their participation as players.
Taumaunu’s knowledge and experience have been recognised both nationally and internationally, she is currently a member of the INF Rules Advisory Panel and is also a member of the Board of Directors of High Performance Sport NZ.
Taumaunu received the NNZ Service Award in 2009. She was made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) in 1992 and an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit (ONZM) in 2016 for her services to Netball while also being inducted into the NZ Sports Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Māori Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Others to be acknowledged with Netball New Zealand Service Awards were:
Karen Betty – Pukekohe Netball Centre
Lynette Brady – Netball North Harbour
Jennifer Gerrand – Hamilton City Netball
Elizabeth Hicks – Pukekohe Netball Centre
Tania Karauria – Auckland Netball Centre
Eleanor Kitching – Waiuku Netball Centre
Margaret Kelly – Hamilton City Netball Centre
Kora Pene – Netball Hutt Valley
Pam Pennell – Auckland Netball Centre
Kirstin Scully – Dunedin Netball Centre
Margaret Webby – Hamilton Netball Centre