Central Zone boss to step down

Netball Central Zone chief executive Carolyn Young is stepping down from her role to become the boss of Special Olympics New Zealand.

Young, who has held her position for nearly five years, will leave her post at the end of next month to replace Kathy Gibson as chief executive of Special Olympics - the organisation which celebrates achievements of children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

Young joined Netball Central near the end of their first financial year, and board chair Carol Sander said as a result of her leadership it had left the zone in good heart.

‘‘During this time, the foundation of the zone has been laid and we have gone on to win our first trophy with the Beko [Netball League] title in 2017 and made the playoffs at the elite domestic level for the first time in Pulse history in 2017.’’

The vacant position is expected to be advertised in the coming days, with Young saying she was sad to be leaving but that she felt the zone was in very capable hands and it was a good time for someone else to take it through its next stage.

‘‘I will continue watching from the sidelines with a keen interest and wish everyone within the zone all the best,’’ she said. ‘‘I would like to thank the netball community for all the support that I have received during my tenure, the staff, board, centres, players and volunteers, all are key contributors with key roles, who help make netball great.’’

Young will now take the role of Gibson, who will now complete some post-graduate study, having been at the helm of Special Olympics for almost 10 years and seeing the organisation grow from 4,600 athletes to around 12,000.