November 30, 2021
Traffic light turns red for Waka Ama Sprints
Waka Ama NZ has cancelled next January’s Te Wānanga o Aotearoa Waka Ama Sprint Nationals on Lake Karapiro.
Chair Zalene Douglas says in light of current information about the spread of COVID-19, it did not want to put at risk any waka ama whānau.
She says risk factors included the presence of large numbers of unvaccinated tamariki alongside pakeke or their kuia and kaumatua, the increased travel of the Waka Ama whānau throughout Aotearoa and the large inequities and disparity in vaccination rates for Māori and Pasifika whānau compared with the general population.
It’s the first time since it started 32 years ago the event has not gone ahead.
The Sprint Nationals was a qualifying event for the IVF Va’a World Sprints in London next August, so more information will be released regarding a qualifying process for the Aotearoa NZ paddlers and clubs.
New Zealand moves to the traffic light system of Covid management on Friday, with Northland, Auckland, Taupō and Rotorua Lakes Districts, Kawerau, Whakatane, Ōpōtiki Districts, Gisborne District, Wairoa District, Rangitikei, Whanganui and Ruapehu Districts moving in at Red.
The rest of the North Island and the whole of the South Island will move in at Orange.