Erin's roll continues

Blenheim speed skater Erin Green’s career goes from strength to strength, the 15-year-old claiming the national banked track title in Timaru earlier this year.

The competition featured more than 60 skaters from around the country, including several recent national champions.

It was Erin’s first year in the junior ladies grade, where she took on rivals up to 19-years-old.

Apart from upstaging local favourite Charli Nevin in the 10,000m points race, Erin also excelled in the road and flat track events, missing out on the overall national title by a single point.

Subsequently she was named in the NZ team for the Oceania champs, then the NZ squad to travel to the world champs in Colombia. Unfortunately, Covid put paid to that trip, the national body deciding it would be too risky, plus a major financial outlay for the athletes themselves.

To maintain fitness levels, Erin took up track cycling during the summer months and plans to tackle road cycling in the winter. She recently competed with success in the 2021 GrapeRide.

She recently returned to Timaru for the Southern Bank Track and Road Speedskating Championships and earned some high praise from one of the legends of the sport.

Erin, who was described by South Canterbury coach Bill Begg after the weekend’s racing as “the fastest young woman skater in New Zealand … an exceptional skater”, took out the women's 200m, 500m and 1000m events on Saturday at the bank track, and the women’s 100m, 500m and 1500m road races at Levels Raceway on Sunday. She also won the 5000m scratch race on Sunday.