Korotangi stands as a living symbol of strength and legacy this time, not in stone, but in skin.
At the opening of Koroneihana 2025, the brother of the new Māori Queen appeared on the paepae tapu wearing a newly completed mataora/ a full-face tā moko etched with ancestral patterns.
Today’s Ngā kawe mate ō Tainui waka lasted close to 40 minutes, where iwi from across Tainui carrying their loved ones who had passed on over the past year were welcomed onto the marae ātea with karanga, haka, and waiata echoing across the grounds.
As the mist lifted over Tūrangawaewae, his presence beside his sister, Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po, was more than ceremonial, it was a statement of whānau, of whakapapa, and of a movement stepping boldly into a new era.
