Ka huri te tai, ā, ka huri te aronga o Hoe Tonga ki anamata
On Saturday, the 27th, our Board gathered for a productive wānanga where we explored the strategic direction for the Hoe Tonga Pacifica Waka Ama region for the next 4-5 years.
It was a great opportunity to come together and share our hopes and visions, mapping out some inspiring focus kaupapa that lie ahead for our waka community.
Koinei te tīmatanga – we can’t wait for our clubs and kaihoe to join us on this haerenga. Watch this space!
Mana Pasifika Outrigger Canoe Club would like to thank all clubs with teams participating in the Twin Harbours race on Saturday 23 August 2025 at Ngāti Toa Domain.
We would also like to thank the support crews in safety boats on the water, those preparing kai in the kitchen, taking times on the sideline, doing safety checks and generally helping out. We had a successful race day because of the paddlers and support people involved, even the coastguard came out to support the morning racing.
We were blessed with a fabulous day for this race, 4 knot easterly winds and an incoming high tide. Both the short and long races started at 0900 with the last 17km crew crossing the line in a modest time of 1:34:58:03.
Big thanks to Thomas for opening and closing our regatta, remembering our waka mates who have passed on, specifically Steve Kenny who was a big part of the Ngati Toa waka scene and always advocating for hauora.
Nō mātou o Hoe Tonga – Ka nui te mihi ki a koutou o Mana Pasifika Outrigger Canoe Club for hosting the Twin Harbours Race i tēnei ata!
Due to the low number of entries in the short race, both the 9km and 17km races will begin at the same time. The updated event programme is as follows:
08:00am – all teams have their waka at Ngāti Toa Domain to complete safety checks
08:30am – race safety briefing is delivered for both races
09:00am – both races start
If you need to contact someone about these changes, please email katmasoe@gmail.com
The voting process is now open for the Waka Ama NZ elected board member. Each club has been emailed a voting form to submit their vote. Clubs have until Thursday, 11 September, to submit their vote form.
For full information on the voting process and the details of the nominees, visit the Waka Ama NZ website: https://wakaama.co.nz/stories/read/1006683 For further information or any questions, email admin@wakaama.co.nz
Hoe Tonga will be holding the 2025 Annual General Meeting next week via Zoom on Wednesday 20th August, 2025.
We require one nominated representative to attend from each of our Hoe Tonga Clubs to ensure we have a quorum. Additional club members are welcome to join by registering their interest via email to hoetonga@gmail.comfor the link.
All relevant documentation is linked below for your review.
Tēnā koutou, we are excited to announce the Hoe Tonga Winter Paddler Series for 2025. This series is designed for paddlers who wish to race in our region over the winter months and is also an opportunity for clubs to introduce novice paddlers to waka ama racing while generating some income.
Waka Ama NZ have shared some statistics with us showing a record increase of 27% of affiliated Hoe Tonga members! We’d love to see all of these new members taking part in the upcoming races and continue to grow the sport in our region.
Hoe Tonga are seeking Expressions of Interest from affiliated member clubs who wish to host an event, and who have the capacity within their club to host. A document with some background information for clubs to consider when planning and event in the paddler series is attached here.
Available race dates are listed below, noting Tai Tonga 41 are hosting the first sanctioned race of the series on Saturday 21st June 2025 at Evans Bay.
Please submit your Expression of Interest along with a list of dates in order of preference to hoetonga@gmail.com by June 18th, 2025. Should you require any additional information please reach out.
1067 kaihoe from 59 clubs across Aotearoa registered to take part in this national qualifying event, with 3 days of racing long distances of 8km, 16 km, and 24km to secure a place to compete at the IVF Va’a World Distance Championships 2025 held in Brazil in August! 🇧🇷
Luckily the atua heard our karakia and blessed us with three days of beautiful weather and prime paddling conditions for the event! ☀️
Now our manuhiri understand the classic saying “you can’t beat Welly on a good day” (don’t worry, we saved the wildest windiest Wellington weather for the days that followed the LDNs ⛈ you’re welcome).
Massive congratulations to those that placed and huge thanks to everyone who came along and got involved with the event! 🌟
E kīia nei te kōrero, he aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata.
Nā reira me mihi ka tika ki a koutou katoa kua haere ki tō mātou nei rohe o Te Whanganui ā Tara mō tēnei kaupapa motuhake mō te waka ama.
Ngā mihi whakawhetai hoki ki ngā kaitūao mō tō mahi me tō āwhina ki a mātou o Hoe Tonga ki te whakahaere i tēnei whakataetae, ngā pākihi kua tautokotia i a mātou me te whānau o Waka Ama NZ. Tēnā koutou katoa 💛
Finally, we’d like to acknowledge our Hoe Tonga board and whānau. Tēnā rawa atu to our Race Director James Sadler and event leads Anita Taggart, Ani Suitauloa, Chris Fox, Jasmine Kaa, Marinna Millanta-Lowrey, Matai Te Kere, Ria Millan, Selena Katene and Thomas Tawhiri who all provided great leadership not only during the buildup to LDN’s but also over the 3 days💛
Mā mua ka kite a muri, mā muri ka ora a mua.
It’s been 12 years since Hoe Tonga has hosted this event, so we’d love to get your whakaaro on the 2025 Long Distance Nationals! If you haven’t already, please share your opinion here 🔗 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/588ZVVF
Hei whakakapi, ko te tūmanako he mīharo rawa te wheako me te whakataetae hoki, ā, he haumaru te hokingā atu ki te kāinga. We hope everyone had an awesome experience at this years’ competition and had a safe return home.
Nā mātou o Hoe Tonga Pacifica Waka Ama Association me ngā karapu o tēnei rohe, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.
Saturday 18 October 2025
Evans Bay, Wellington
9 km short course
16 km long course
W1, W2, W4, W6 Men, Women, Mixed teams
23 AUGUST RACE UPDATE
Hoe Tonga Pacifica Waka Ama Association 