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The Aotearoa team is back from World Indigenous Games in Brazil with a gold medal in the women’s tug of war and a host of new friendships.
Leader Harko Brown says the 43-strong contingent was there to share Maori culture and support the kaupapa rather than take away sporting trophies, but everyone put their heart into the events they competed in.
They made an immediate impact with the kapa haka smashing the stage on the opening night, and the mix of rangatahi and adults in the roopu also broke down barriers.
"People would come up to us and say in their language we were like the Germans because they had the Soccer World Cup there the year before and the Germans were the friendly ones so immediately we were quoted as the friendly ones, the ones that got out there and mixed with people and shared our culture and got people to try things we were doing, so we did kapa haka, we did mau rakau, we did traditional games, we competed, we installed kiorahi fields and we did workshops to teach locals a little about our culture and our moko," Mr Brown says.
It's possible the traditional game kiorahi could be included in the next games.
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