A netball tournament is in its 37th year of promoting healthy living and hauora for wāhine Māori.
The Aotearoa Māori Netball Oranga Healthy Lifestyle tournament will be hosting 42 teams from around the country at the Westbrook Netball courts in Rotorua this Easter.
Aotearoa Māori Netball oranga healthy lifestyle national manager Parekura Cribb (Te Ātihaunui a Pāpārangi, Ngāti Pikiao) said the tournament was established through the Māori Women’s Welfare League.
“Back in the late 1980′s the kaupapa at that time was around promoting healthy lifestyles for Māori women and the whānau. That’s how the kaupapa began. I think that we have sustained ourselves really well for a voluntary organisation in terms of the health and wellbeing of our wāhine and their whānau.”
Cribb said over the years they’ve seen trends in the reduction of smoking and are working hard to ensure a smoke free Aotearoa.
“The physical and mental wellbeing of our whānau is certainly improving,” she said.
“It’s such a great space for our rangatahi and not just our rangatahi. We engage with our pēpi right through to our kaumātua and if you get the opportunity to come down to Westbrook Netball courts this weekend, come along, feel the way the wairua.
“It’s just such a great place where our people can be who we are, be Māori and excel on and off the court. That’s all part of our mission and our kaupapa, Tū ora, Tū kaha, Tū mana, Tū Māori.”
She said they would continue to promote healthy living to Māori in the future.
“We’re hoping that our people see active lifestyles as being a way for them to maintain their hauora. It connects our people to our culture through the language and through the tikanga.”
The tournament is being held tomorrow until Sunday.
