Ruth Aitken
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use New Zealand English Template:Infobox3colsScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Dame Ruth Ellina Aitken Template:Post-nominals (née Fathers; born 31 July 1956) is a New Zealand former international-level netball player and former head coach of the New Zealand national netball team, the Silver Ferns.
Biography
Aitken was born in 1956 in Paeroa.[1][2] Her parents were Phil and Dorothy Fathers, who moved from Auckland to Paeroa after Aitken had children; that way she could continue with the travel required for her netball coaching career.[3]
A former goal-attack, Aitken represented New Zealand in the 1979 World Netball Championships in Trinidad and Tobago, playing two warm-up games and then in one match against Ireland.[4]
Aitken became coach of the Silver Ferns in 2001, replacing Yvonne Willering.[4] During Aitken's tenure as national head coach, the Silver Ferns won the 2003 World Netball Championships and the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games, but came second to Australia at both the 2002 Commonwealth Games and the 2007 World Netball Championships. In February 2008, Aitken was re-signed as national head coach for a further four years.[5] In late 2011, she retired as coach of the national team – and was later replaced by assistant Waimarama Taumaunu. In December 2012, it was announced that Aitken would take over as Technical Director and National Coach of Netball Singapore.[6] She is a member of the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand.[7]
Honours and awards
At the 2003 Halberg Awards, Aitken was awarded Coach of the Year.[3] In the 2011 Queen's Birthday Honours, Aitken was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to netball, alongside Silver Ferns captain Casey Williams.[8] In the 2022 Queen's Birthday and Platinum Jubilee Honours, she was promoted to Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to netball.[9]
In 2024, Aitken was an inaugural inductee to the Netball New Zealand Hall of Fame.[10]
References
<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />
- ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
- ↑ New Zealand Olympic Committee profile. Retrieved 11 April 2009.
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
External links
Template:New Zealand national netball team Script error: No such module "navboxes". Template:New Zealand squad at the 1979 World Netball Championships Template:New Zealand netball squad at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Template:New Zealand squad at the 2003 World Netball Championships Template:New Zealand netball squad at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Template:New Zealand netball squad at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Template:New Zealand squad at the 2011 World Netball ChampionshipsScript error: No such module "navboxes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Template:Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic Template:Northern Mystics
- Pages with script errors
- New Zealand netball coaches
- New Zealand netball players
- Dames Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit
- 1956 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Paeroa
- New Zealand national netball team coaches
- ANZ Championship coaches
- Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic coaches
- 1979 World Netball Championships players
- Northern Mystics coaches
- Sportspeople awarded damehoods
- National Bank Cup coaches
- 20th-century New Zealand sportswomen