TODAY’S 5 QUESTIONS
1You must have been stoked to be recognised at the recent Matariki Awards for your efforts with IronMaori. Were you surprised?
I was pretty stunned actually, I didn’t think we would win, I thought Mana [NASA] would win so I wasn’t actually prepared with a speech, and I was shaking all the way through my speech where I don’t usually find it hard to speak to any audience. We were amazed and blown away, we celebrated with a cuppa and some biscuits back at the motel.
2What was the spark behind IronMaori?
Crossing the finish line at IronMan New Zealand gave me the biggest sense of achievement I have ever felt in my life, right next to giving birth to my three beautiful children. Unless you’ve done it you won’t know the feeling (yes IronMaori and giving birth haha!) but seriously that sense of achievement is what I wanted to create in the IronMaori environment so people would go off and achieve whatever it is in life they wish to achieve, knowing they could.
3How’s the training going for IronMaori Women’s Duathlon event next month?
To be honest its a bit sporadic, because I’ve done a bit of travelling lately and haven’t planned my training into the travel very well or actually at all. It’s going to be a great day so I need to make sure I do myself justice with it being my first IronMaori, I will actually become an IronMaori that day.
4How are the entries coming along for this (women’s duathlon) event?
They are coming in nicely, we have women coming from, Hamilton, Whanganui, Dannevirke, Auckland, Taupo, Wellington, Manawatu, Levin, Waipukurau, Rotorua and Fielding. Three entries of women over the age of 65 which we think is pretty cool. It’s going to be a great day for the women as well as our male counterparts who will be hosting the entire event.
5Where do you see IronMaori in 10 years’ time?
I would like to see that it has had a significant impact on Maori health and health in general. I would also like to see that our doctors are prescribing IronMaori rather than a lot of medication, and that our court systems sentence those who have committed crimes to IronMaori, or similar type kaupapa as we are not just about exercise and nutrition but we are more about building relationships with people and instilling belief in people so they can be all that they want to be.