Canoe Racing New Zealand is pleased to announce the appointment of Jaimee McAleese as a National Selector following endorsement by the CRNZ Board.
Selectors play a critical role in ensuring our athletes are selected fairly, transparently and in accordance with CRNZ’s selection policies. They help shape New Zealand teams across a range of campaigns and competition levels, providing independent judgement and oversight throughout the selection process.
Jaimee McAleese (nee Lovett) brings a unique combination of elite paddling experience, leadership capability and professional expertise. As an athlete, Jaimee was part of New Zealand’s high performance programme from 2007 to 2017, competing at international regattas including World Championships and the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, where the New Zealand Women’s K4 became the first New Zealand women’s K4 crew to compete at an Olympic Games, finishing 5th.
Since retiring from international competition, Jaimee has remained closely connected to high performance sport through athlete support, leadership development and Olympic initiatives. Her involvement has included athlete performance support at the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games, serving as a New Zealand Olympic Committee Olympic Ambassador, participation in the NZOC Women in Sport Leadership Academy, and facilitating the NZOC Wāhine Toa leadership programme.
Professionally, Jaimee brings extensive leadership experience in people, culture and organisational performance. Her career has included senior executive responsibilities covering organisational strategy, leadership, governance, risk management, workplace culture and decision-making. This background provides a strong foundation for the balanced judgement, integrity and evidence-based decision-making required of a national selector.
CRNZ Chief Executive Graham Oberlin-Brown says “Jaimee brings valuable experience and a strong understanding of our sport through her involvement as both an athlete and leader. Her ability to assess information objectively, apply sound judgement and understand the athlete perspective will be a significant asset to the selector group.”
Jaimee joins the selector team at an exciting time for the sport, with growing athlete numbers, strong international performances and increasing opportunities across our junior, under-23 and senior programmes. Her appointment reflects CRNZ’s ongoing commitment to strengthening the capability, diversity and independence of our decision-making processes as we continue to develop the athletes, coaches and champions of the future.
Jaimee replaces Chris Emmett on the selector team after several years in the role. Canoe Racing New Zealand thanks Chris for his contribution to our selection environment and the important role he has played in supporting athlete and programme success.
Congratulations Jaimee on your appointment and thank you for your willingness to serve the canoe racing community.
