New Zealand Paralympian Duane Kale Elected to IPC Governing Board

Paralympics New Zealand (PNZ) is pleased to announce that Duane Kale has been elected as a member on the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Governing Board.

Duane was elected from 25 excellent candidates from across the globe nominated for the IPC Governing Board at elections held on 24 November at the IPC General Assembly in Athens, Greece. 

Duane’s election is the culmination of a four-year international strategy. It is a direct result of Duane’s profound contribution to Paralympic Sport as a star Paralympian, Team Manager, Chef de Mission, PNZ Board Member and past PNZ President.

Duane Kale says, “I am thrilled to be elected to the IPC Governing Board and I look forward to taking on this leadership role and working to provide the opportunity for more Paralympians to experience the feeling of victory and achieving success.” He continues, “I am excited about representing the National Paralympic Committees, International Sporting Federations and International Sports Organisations for the Disabled at an international level and advocating for increased athlete participation and regional representation.”
 
Duane Kale is best known for his outstanding performance in Swimming at the Atlanta 1996 Paralympic Games winning six medals (4 Gold, I Silver, 1 Bronze) and breaking four world records.  Most recently he was Chef de Mission of the highly successful New Zealand teams at both the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Paralympic Games.  He is a PNZ Board Member and has an extensive commercial finance career as a Senior Manager in ANZ Bank. He has taken on many lead roles in governance and compliance. 

"Duane’s election to the IPC Governing Board is an outstanding achievement, and ensures that New Zealand and the Oceania Region is well positioned to contribute to, and have a significant impact within, International Sport. I know that Duane is eager to collaborate with our international counterparts and further enhance the Paralympic movement," said Mark Copeland, Chairman, Paralympics New Zealand. "Duane has a unique depth of understanding of the Paralympic Games from a diverse perspective. He will be a great contributor to the continued growth of Paralympic sporting success internationally.”

Sir Philip Craven (Great Britain) continues as IPC President and Andrew Parsons (Brazil) becomes the new IPC Vice-President.

Members at Large include:

Mohamed Alhameli (United Arab Emirates)
Ann Cody (USA)
Rita van Driel (Netherlands)
Patrick Jarvis (Canada)
Duane Kale (New Zealand)
Jairus Mogalo (Kenya)
Kyung-won Na (Korea)
John Petersson (Denmark)
Miguel Sagarra (Spain)
Yasushi Yamawaki (Japan)

New Zealand Paralympian Tim Prendergast is also representing New Zealand at the IPC General Assembly as a member on the IPC Athletes Council.