This year stands as one of the largest national sporting events in Aotearoa, seeing the same explosive growth as Te Matatini and with the influx of new paddlers how will the organisers fit everyone in?
The “Extra Day” and how it currently operates..
When Te Matatini faced this kind of surge, they added an extra day. However Lara Collins, Chief Executive of Waka Ama is resisting that move. She says that while growth is great, a longer event puts too much pressure on whānau. Currently she’s only focused on the basics and ensuring enough parking, toilets to look after the crowd.
Managing the growth
With the excitement as the sport moves to the next level, it currently operates under a split system.
- W6 (Teams of six) and W12 (Teams of 12) - these categories currently have an open door and qualify automatically for Nationals.
- Solo Paddlers (W1) Due to the massive popularity of solo racing and the limited lanes available, solo paddlers must qualify at a regional level to compete at Nationals.
The increase in numbers has also impacted the daily schedule. Races now begin as early as 7:30 AM until 5:00 PM to accommodate the heats. This raises a practical question that if the growth continues at this rate, will team categories eventually be forced and require regional qualifications to reach Nationals?
Lara says “We haven’t made any decisions about what the future events look like”
Ko ngā whakataetae o te ao ki tā wāhi
Koinei ngā reihi whakamutunga e uru atu ai ngā kaihoe ki ngā whakataetae waka ama o te ao ki Singapore hei te marama o Akuhata.
Hei tautoko i tēnei haerenga, kua hono a Waka Ama Aotearoa ki te kamupene ki a House of Travel hei hiki i ētahi o ngā uauatanga i tā te kaihoe haere atu ki tā wāhi ki ngā whakataetae o te ao.
Hei tā hiamana tuarua tā Turanga Barclay-Kerr ka noho tonu ngā whakataetae ki Karapiro mō ake tonu atu, ahakoa te nui, ahakoa te rahi o te whakataetae.
