February 16, 2015
Hawera embraces Iron Maori
Hawera’s first Iron Maori triathlon on Saturday drew more than 600 competitors as whanau embraced the vision of health through exercise.
Organiser Heather Skipworth says the numbers of people taking part in Taranaki had increased every year since she spun the event off the main Hawkes Bay iron Maori in 2013.
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer from Te Runanga o Ngati Ruanui says she put in a tono for the event so people south of the maunga could experience the excitement.
She says there were as many watching as competing.
"I think the kaupapa is such that once you watch, the following year you participate in a sprint, then you do a quarter, then a half, and ultimately the gain is to get more Maori faces in Ironman. There is just as much loudness for the last person coming over the finish line as the first so it’s kotahitanga at its best," she says.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH DEBBIE NGAREWA PACKER CLICK ON THE LINK
http://www.waateanews.com/play_podcast?podlink=MjYzODk=
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