Kirsten Louise Hellier (née Smith; born 6 October 1969 in

Tokoroa Tokoroa ( mi, Te Kaokaoroa o Pātetere) is the fifth-largest town in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand and largest settlement in the South Waikato District. Located 30 km southwest of Rotorua, close to the foot of the ...

) is a former

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the wom ...

er, who represented New Zealand at the Commonwealth and the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

. She set her personal best (62.52 metres) in 1994 with the old javelin type. Hellier was the coach of World Champion shot putter

Valerie Adams Dame Valerie Kasanita Adams (formerly Vili; born 6 October 1984) is a retired New Zealand shot putter. She is a four-time World champion, four-time World Indoor champion, two-time Olympic, three-time Commonwealth Games champion and twice IAAF ...

from 1998 until 2010. At the

1994 Commonwealth Games The 1994 Commonwealth Games (French: ''XVéme Jeux du Commonwealth'') were held in Victoria, British Columbia, from 18 to 28 August 1994. Ten types of sports were featured at the Victoria Games: athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cycling ...

Hellier won the silver medal in the women's javelin with a throw of 60.40 m. She placed 8th at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in the same event. Hellier competed at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

where she placed 17th overall in qualifying with a throw of 59.34 m. Hellier currently works at Macleans College as a sports co-coordinator. Her father Lionel Smith was a hurdler at the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

. Hellier won the Halberg Awards Coach of the Year in 2007 and 2008. In the

2018 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as p ...

, Hellier was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to sport, particularly athletics. In 2020, Hellier was appointed to Athletics New Zealand in a key coaching role as Athletic NZ Programme Coach. An interview with Hellier was featured in the 2022 documentary film '' Dame Valerie Adams: More than Gold''.

Achievements

References

External links

* * 1969 births Living people New Zealand female javelin throwers Athletes (track and field) at the 1990 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1992 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games silver medallists for New Zealand Olympic athletes of New Zealand Sportspeople from Tokoroa People educated at Macleans College Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit {{NewZealand-athletics-bio-stub