Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa from Hamilton have been named champions of the national primary school kapa haka competition, Te Mana Kuratahi.
The group were one of six representing the rohe (region) of Tainui, emerging from a competitive event with 62 groups competing It’s the first time they have won the title.
Tutor Poumea Walker said they were excited and humbled by the win. He said they were a small school from an underprivileged community.
“Nō reira ko tā mātou, ko tā ngā kaiako he whakaū i te whakapono i roto i ngā tamariki me te whakaaro ka taea e rātou ngā taumata ikeike o te ao Māori te eke mēnā ka ū tonu rātou ki te tuakiri Māori, ki te reo Māori, ērā āhuatanga katoa.”
(“So we teachers try to instil a sense of belief in the students that they can reach those heights of success in te ao Māori if they stay true to their Māori identity, language, and all those values and attributes.”)
Huntly’s Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga were named runners up, while Te Whānau o Te Maro Hauhake from Tauranga placed third.
Head judge Turuhira Hare said judges were impressed with the overall standard of performance from groups. The quality of singing from soloists across the groups were on another level, she said.
“Kua eke ō koutou reo waiata ki tētahi atu taumata e kore mātou e taea te whai atu.”
(“Your voices have reached a whole new level that we cannot match.”)
In her closing remarks she urged schools to incorporate mātauranga Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi into kapa haka as a response to the Government’s recent proposal to remove school boards' obligation to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
During the prizegiving, organisers marked the event's 25th anniversary with a cutting of the cake by Hare and Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po. A special handover ceremony took place between this year’s hosts and the next, Te Tai Tokerau, to formally close proceedings.
The five-day event at Mercury Baypark in Tauranga drew thousands of schoolkids and supporters.
Rauangi Rolleston, who welcomed the schools during the pōwhiri earlier this week, told Te Karere that they were well prepared to host the masses but it was still a sight to behold.
“I te mōhio kē mātou ka nui rawa te tira whakaeke, heoi, ka kite atu ka tino mōhio ki te mātotoru.”
(“We already knew the visiting groups were large in number, but to see them you really got the sense of the multitude of people.”)
Full results
Aggregate
Toa Whakaihu Waka
1 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
2 Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
3 Te Whānau o Te Maro
Whakaeke
1 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
2 Te Wharekura o Rakaumanga
3 eq Ngā Mahuri
TKKM o Bernard Fergusson
Mōteatea
1 eq Te Whānau o Te Maro
Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
3 eq Te Pū o Te Wheke
Te Kapa Puawai
Waiata ā ringa
1 Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
2 Te Whānau o Te Maro
3 eq Ngā Mahuri
Te Kura Māori o Ngā Tapuwae
Poi
1 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
2 Ngā Purapura Tuawhiti o Te Koutu
3 Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Pātetere Kura Waenga
Haka
1 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
2 Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
3 eq Te Kapa Takawaenga o Ruatoki
Te Pū o Te Wheke
Whakawātea
1 eq Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Pātetere, Kura Waenga
Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
3 eq Ngā Mahuri
Te Kapa Takawaenga o Ruatoki
TKKM o Te Rau Aroha
TKKM o Bernard Fergusson
Ngā Iti Rearea
Reo
1 Te Whānau o Te Maro
2 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
3 eq Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
Ngā Purapura Tuawhiti o Te Koutu
Non-Aggregate
Te Kapa Toa o Nga Kura Tuatahi Tau 0-6
Ngā Mātāpuna o Horahora
Te Titonga Hou
1 Te Whānau o Te Maro
2 Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa
3 eq Ngā Purapura Tuawhiti o Te Koutu
Te Wharekura o Rākaumanga
Kaikaranga
1 Ngā Puāwai o Te Kura
2 eq TKKM o Ruamata
Te Wharekura o Rakaumanga
Te Kapa Puāwai
Ngā Mātāpuna o Horahora
Whaikōrero
1 eq Te Kapa Takawaenga o Ruatoki
Te Tira Haka o Ngāruahine
3 eq Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Pātetere, Kura Waenga
Te Kapa Puāwai
Kākahu
1 eq TKKM o Ruamata
Te Wharekura Ngāti Rongomai
Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Pātetere, Kura Waenga
Te Whānau o Te Maro
Kura Taniwha
Te Pū Whāriki
Manukura Tāne
1 eq Ngā Taiohi
Ngā Purapura Tuawhiti o Te Koutu
Te Wharekura o Rākaumangamanga
Te Kura o Waioweka
Manukura Wahine
1 Te Kura o Waioweka
2 eq Te Whānau o Te Maro
Ngā Taiohi
Waiata Tira
1 eq Te Wharekura o Tauranga Moana
Te Wharekura o Te Rau Aroha
3 Te Whānau o Te Maro.
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