OUR STORY

Southern Elite Performance Camp is the culmination of 4 years of developing players in Central Otago and the wider region.

Beth Mackie, founder of Southern Elite, created Aspiring Basketball Academy in 2021 & since then has had 30+ athletes go on to play for Otago at Representative level and 4 athletes invited to National Camps.

The junior talent coming out of our region has taken a leap in the past 4 years, and the interest from outside coaches has continued to rise.

Therefore in 2026 we want to host our biggest venture yet.

This February we will bring 60 of the best u16 male & female athletes from Central, Southland & Otago, alongside some of the best coaches in the South, to Wānaka for a 3 day performance camp.

Our goal is to shine a light on the talent in the South Central region of New Zealand & support these players in their journey.

Our 3 day camp will host 60 athletes and 12 coaches from across New Zealand. Camp will operate between our 4 home courts, at Paetara Aspiring Central & the Wānaka Recreation Centre. We will provide physiotherapy, strength & condition training, sports psychology and on court basketball development for 60 male and female athletes. This will be the first camp of it’s kind here in Central Otago!

The goal is to make Wānaka the hub for high performance basketball in the South Central region of New Zealand, shining a spotlight on our athletes.

It is also a great opportunity for athletes from all around this region to get together with incredible coaches and support staff to share their passion for the game and learn more about performance sport.

We live in a geographically complex part of the country and one of the biggest barriers to participation & growth on our athletes is travel. By creating high quality camps here in our home town, and bringing coaches to us, we can deliver better pathways to our players who take the game seriously.

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