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Embracing Māori Culture within Rowing New Zealand
In recent years, there has been a strong movement within the Rowing New Zealand community to embrace and embed Māori culture more deeply into our daily environment and way of operating
Rowing New Zealand’s local iwi is Ngāti Koroki Kahukura and in recent years have worked closely with Hare from the iwi, who has played a key role in helping us understand and integrate Māori practices and values across the organisation.
CE Simon Wickham states “What stands out for me is the support we’ve had from Ngāti Koroki Kahukura with Hare’s kind encouragement to move this forward at our pace to make this part of our own journey - it's been huge for our confidence knowing we have their support.”
Earlier this year, the 2024–2025 Summer Squad visited the marae, where they listened to iwi share stories about their background and learned about Māori history, traditions, and customs. It was a meaningful experience for both athletes and support staff - a chance to connect more deeply with the land, our iwi, and the cultural principles that guide us.
Understanding the “why” behind these practices helped strengthen our sense of belonging and appreciation for Māori heritage.
One of the most powerful expressions of this growing cultural connection has been the haka and waiata we have learned and performed at events and welcomes. A recent example was the pōwhiri for our new athletes and support staff, where we came together to perform a waiata and exchange hongi as we welcomed them into the Rowing NZ whānau.
It was incredibly special to have Hare lead the ceremony, with Harry Fitzpatrick and Will Maling delivering heartfelt speeches in te reo Māori to thank everyone for the warm welcome, alongside Simon.
Singing the waiata together has become a real highlight - something that now carries a strong sense of buy-in, pride, and collective commitment. Everyone puts genuine effort into pronouncing each word correctly, and it has become something the whole team looks forward to, often swaying together in rhythm. It’s a uniquely uplifting way to connect as a group, offering a moment of unity and energy that sits apart from the usual rhythms of training, meetings, and day-to-day work.
It’s often seen on New Zealand screens over the country how passionate and close the New Zealand Sevens teams are, and how strongly they live by and represent Māori culture. From singing together with big smiles, to performing haka that showcase their strength and unity, to the genuine whānau approach they bring to their environment - it’s inspiring to see. You can see how positively this impacts their team culture, and it’s awesome to see Rowing NZ embracing and implementing these values too.
Our team delivering an emotionally charged haka to some of our medal winners in Paris.
After speaking with several members of the NZ Olympic Committee and the New Zealand Team, it’s clear that Māori culture is not just valued - it is central to the team’s identity and performance environment. This commitment is embodied in Te Whare o Pou Tangata, a cultural framework created by Tā Derek Lardelli. The whare serves as the team’s foundation, with the tekoteko symbolising the athlete at the front, and the pou (pillars) representing the values that uphold and unify the team.
Alex Cooper from the NZ Olympic Committee explains:
“Te Ao Māori is not an add-on; it is woven into everything we do, from Games operations to athlete support. The whare model ensures tikanga and our values guide decision-making, ceremonies, and team protocols. We believe this creates an authentic environment where athletes feel connected to Aotearoa New Zealand and proud of their heritage. The mat of the whare is woven so that everyone can sit on it - bringing together their own experiences, backgrounds, and beliefs for a shared purpose: to help the athlete reach the top of the maunga.”
At the Paris Olympics, the haka truly came to life. Athletes who had competed in Tokyo spoke about feeling left out last Olympics when other New Zealand teams performed the haka and rowing hadn’t fully embraced it or learnt it. This time was completely different as months before the Games, the team began practising several times a week. Those sessions were full of laughter, pride, and unity - the haka became a symbol of our collective spirit. As everyone’s confidence and emotion grew, so did the sense of mana within the group.
Throughout the Games, we performed the haka often - to welcome others into the Village, to show gratitude, and to honour achievements. But the most powerful moments came when teammates returned to our accommodation with their medals. Performing the haka for them - to celebrate and welcome them home - was deeply emotional and unforgettable.
A standout memory was when Emma Twigg returned with her medal, marking what many felt could be the close of her flat-water rowing career. As we performed the haka for her, tears flowed freely - from Emma and from some of the team. It was a raw, moving moment that captured the pride, unity, and deep respect that Māori culture has helped bring to our team.
The New Zealand Olympic Rowing Team was also welcomed into their accommodation by NZ Chef de Mission Nigel Avery and members of the Olympic Committee support staff. Each Rowing NZ athlete and staff member was presented with a pounamu to mark their selection to the New Zealand team and to wish them luck for their competition. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu kaiwhakahaere Justin Tipa shared that, for the past 20 years, the iwi has crafted unique pounamu pieces for every New Zealand Olympic athlete. This particular stone, found only on the Cascade Plateau south of Haast, is known for its rich, deep green colour and distinctive white snowflake pattern.
For the last two years, Rowing New Zealand has also worked closely with local iwi Ngāti Koroki Kahukura to develop meaningful designs for our NZ Rowing Championships and Maadi apparel collections and all our winners' tees for our main NZ regattas. This collaboration, which uses designs inspired by Ngāti Koroki Kahukura artwork, gives the collections more meaning and makes the pieces unique to our sport and Aotearoa.
How special was the Māori influence within the Olympic team environment, and is there a standout moment that really captured that for you?
Logan Ullrich: To me, it was very special to have such a strong Māori influence in the Olympic team last year. Māori culture is New Zealand culture, and to be able represent who we are as a country on the world stage was a dream come true. There was no moment in particular that stood out above the rest. Every welcoming, waiata, and haka was special and reminded me that the whole of Aotearoa was behind us in our journey.
Stella Clayton Greene: I felt a lot more pride for home and our culture. I have very memorable moments of performing the haka for our returning medalists and absolutely balling my eyes out with them because of the emotions of it all. Being able to capture that moment with my teammates and seeing everyone get emotional about it all to me shows how special it is! Throughout the whole week the emotion of it all built and that really came through in the waiata and haka. I think as well, being at the games with the other countries you begin to see how we actually are one of the few countries who have this sort of cultural piece and I think it made our team a lot more connected.
Lucy Spoors: For me, it’s become one of my favourite parts about representing NZ at an Olympics games. To be able to Haka with teammates and for teammates and represent the fern the way it deserves to be represented is an honour for me. I grew up at a primary school where at the time I never saw a Haka and never heard a Karakia or Waiata, I don’t want that to be the same for my son. When he watches an Olympic Games I want him to understand what I think it means to truly represent the fern.
Lucy Spoors with her young son after she won gold at the Paris Olympics.
The Olympic Committee has an ambitious vision for growing this space, with Alex Cooper sharing valuable insights into the pathway ahead and the continued integration of Māori culture within the New Zealand Team.
The pathway ahead for the continued integration of Māori culture in the NZ Team:
Future Games Vision: With 2026 on the horizon, we have an exciting opportunity to showcase who we are on the world stage at both the Milano Cortina Olympic Games and the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games. We’re also looking forward to an incredible celebration of New Zealand culture at the NZ House boulevard in Culver City for LA28.
Our world-first Indigenous language Olympic glossary — Te Reo Māori ki Parī 2024 — is being further developed for our two Games in 2026.
Deepen Te Whare o Pou Tangata: We will continue embedding its principles across Games planning, operations, and the athlete experience.
Expand Partnerships: We aim to strengthen relationships with iwi and cultural leaders to ensure authenticity, guidance, and shared purpose.
Education & Legacy: Our goal is to integrate these values into Olympic education programmes and ambassador initiatives, inspiring future generations and ensuring a lasting legacy.
As an athlete group and wider rowing community within Rowing NZ, we’re excited to continue learning from Māori culture and to find new ways to embed these values and practices into our daily lives. The Rowing New Zealand athletes and community are incredibly grateful to Hare and local iwi Ngāti Koroki Kahukura for their ongoing support, guidance, and dedication in helping us deepen our understanding and integration of Māori culture.
Kate Haines
Kate Haines has been part of the New Zealand Rowing Team and is studying Accounting at Massey University. She is NZ Olympian #1567, who competed in the Paris Olympics.
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Embracing Māori Culture within Rowing New Zealand
In recent years, there has been a strong movement within the Rowing New Zealand community to embrace and embed Māori culture more deeply into our daily environment and way of operating
Rowing New Zealand’s local iwi is Ngāti Koroki Kahukura and in recent years have worked closely with Hare from the iwi, who has played a key role in helping us understand and integrate Māori practices and values across the organisation.
CE Simon Wickham states “What stands out for me is the support we’ve had from Ngāti Koroki Kahukura with Hare’s kind encouragement to move this forward at our pace to make this part of our own journey - it's been huge for our confidence knowing we have their support.”
Earlier this year, the 2024–2025 Summer Squad visited the marae, where they listened to iwi share stories about their background and learned about Māori history, traditions, and customs. It was a meaningful experience for both athletes and support staff - a chance to connect more deeply with the land, our iwi, and the cultural principles that guide us.
Understanding the “why” behind these practices helped strengthen our sense of belonging and appreciation for Māori heritage.
One of the most powerful expressions of this growing cultural connection has been the haka and waiata we have learned and performed at events and welcomes. A recent example was the pōwhiri for our new athletes and support staff, where we came together to perform a waiata and exchange hongi as we welcomed them into the Rowing NZ whānau.
It was incredibly special to have Hare lead the ceremony, with Harry Fitzpatrick and Will Maling delivering heartfelt speeches in te reo Māori to thank everyone for the warm welcome, alongside Simon.
Singing the waiata together has become a real highlight - something that now carries a strong sense of buy-in, pride, and collective commitment. Everyone puts genuine effort into pronouncing each word correctly, and it has become something the whole team looks forward to, often swaying together in rhythm. It’s a uniquely uplifting way to connect as a group, offering a moment of unity and energy that sits apart from the usual rhythms of training, meetings, and day-to-day work.
It’s often seen on New Zealand screens over the country how passionate and close the New Zealand Sevens teams are, and how strongly they live by and represent Māori culture. From singing together with big smiles, to performing haka that showcase their strength and unity, to the genuine whānau approach they bring to their environment - it’s inspiring to see. You can see how positively this impacts their team culture, and it’s awesome to see Rowing NZ embracing and implementing these values too.
Our team delivering an emotionally charged haka to some of our medal winners in Paris.
After speaking with several members of the NZ Olympic Committee and the New Zealand Team, it’s clear that Māori culture is not just valued - it is central to the team’s identity and performance environment. This commitment is embodied in Te Whare o Pou Tangata, a cultural framework created by Tā Derek Lardelli. The whare serves as the team’s foundation, with the tekoteko symbolising the athlete at the front, and the pou (pillars) representing the values that uphold and unify the team.
Alex Cooper from the NZ Olympic Committee explains:
“Te Ao Māori is not an add-on; it is woven into everything we do, from Games operations to athlete support. The whare model ensures tikanga and our values guide decision-making, ceremonies, and team protocols. We believe this creates an authentic environment where athletes feel connected to Aotearoa New Zealand and proud of their heritage. The mat of the whare is woven so that everyone can sit on it - bringing together their own experiences, backgrounds, and beliefs for a shared purpose: to help the athlete reach the top of the maunga.”
At the Paris Olympics, the haka truly came to life. Athletes who had competed in Tokyo spoke about feeling left out last Olympics when other New Zealand teams performed the haka and rowing hadn’t fully embraced it or learnt it. This time was completely different as months before the Games, the team began practising several times a week. Those sessions were full of laughter, pride, and unity - the haka became a symbol of our collective spirit. As everyone’s confidence and emotion grew, so did the sense of mana within the group.
Throughout the Games, we performed the haka often - to welcome others into the Village, to show gratitude, and to honour achievements. But the most powerful moments came when teammates returned to our accommodation with their medals. Performing the haka for them - to celebrate and welcome them home - was deeply emotional and unforgettable.
A standout memory was when Emma Twigg returned with her medal, marking what many felt could be the close of her flat-water rowing career. As we performed the haka for her, tears flowed freely - from Emma and from some of the team. It was a raw, moving moment that captured the pride, unity, and deep respect that Māori culture has helped bring to our team.
The New Zealand Olympic Rowing Team was also welcomed into their accommodation by NZ Chef de Mission Nigel Avery and members of the Olympic Committee support staff. Each Rowing NZ athlete and staff member was presented with a pounamu to mark their selection to the New Zealand team and to wish them luck for their competition. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu kaiwhakahaere Justin Tipa shared that, for the past 20 years, the iwi has crafted unique pounamu pieces for every New Zealand Olympic athlete. This particular stone, found only on the Cascade Plateau south of Haast, is known for its rich, deep green colour and distinctive white snowflake pattern.
For the last two years, Rowing New Zealand has also worked closely with local iwi Ngāti Koroki Kahukura to develop meaningful designs for our NZ Rowing Championships and Maadi apparel collections and all our winners' tees for our main NZ regattas. This collaboration, which uses designs inspired by Ngāti Koroki Kahukura artwork, gives the collections more meaning and makes the pieces unique to our sport and Aotearoa.
How special was the Māori influence within the Olympic team environment, and is there a standout moment that really captured that for you?
Logan Ullrich: To me, it was very special to have such a strong Māori influence in the Olympic team last year. Māori culture is New Zealand culture, and to be able represent who we are as a country on the world stage was a dream come true. There was no moment in particular that stood out above the rest. Every welcoming, waiata, and haka was special and reminded me that the whole of Aotearoa was behind us in our journey.
Stella Clayton Greene: I felt a lot more pride for home and our culture. I have very memorable moments of performing the haka for our returning medalists and absolutely balling my eyes out with them because of the emotions of it all. Being able to capture that moment with my teammates and seeing everyone get emotional about it all to me shows how special it is! Throughout the whole week the emotion of it all built and that really came through in the waiata and haka. I think as well, being at the games with the other countries you begin to see how we actually are one of the few countries who have this sort of cultural piece and I think it made our team a lot more connected.
Lucy Spoors: For me, it’s become one of my favourite parts about representing NZ at an Olympics games. To be able to Haka with teammates and for teammates and represent the fern the way it deserves to be represented is an honour for me. I grew up at a primary school where at the time I never saw a Haka and never heard a Karakia or Waiata, I don’t want that to be the same for my son. When he watches an Olympic Games I want him to understand what I think it means to truly represent the fern.
Lucy Spoors with her young son after she won gold at the Paris Olympics.
The Olympic Committee has an ambitious vision for growing this space, with Alex Cooper sharing valuable insights into the pathway ahead and the continued integration of Māori culture within the New Zealand Team.
The pathway ahead for the continued integration of Māori culture in the NZ Team:
Future Games Vision: With 2026 on the horizon, we have an exciting opportunity to showcase who we are on the world stage at both the Milano Cortina Olympic Games and the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games. We’re also looking forward to an incredible celebration of New Zealand culture at the NZ House boulevard in Culver City for LA28.
Our world-first Indigenous language Olympic glossary — Te Reo Māori ki Parī 2024 — is being further developed for our two Games in 2026.
Deepen Te Whare o Pou Tangata: We will continue embedding its principles across Games planning, operations, and the athlete experience.
Expand Partnerships: We aim to strengthen relationships with iwi and cultural leaders to ensure authenticity, guidance, and shared purpose.
Education & Legacy: Our goal is to integrate these values into Olympic education programmes and ambassador initiatives, inspiring future generations and ensuring a lasting legacy.
As an athlete group and wider rowing community within Rowing NZ, we’re excited to continue learning from Māori culture and to find new ways to embed these values and practices into our daily lives. The Rowing New Zealand athletes and community are incredibly grateful to Hare and local iwi Ngāti Koroki Kahukura for their ongoing support, guidance, and dedication in helping us deepen our understanding and integration of Māori culture.
Kate Haines
Kate Haines has been part of the New Zealand Rowing Team and is studying Accounting at Massey University. She is NZ Olympian #1567, who competed in the Paris Olympics.
