10yearold wins top mullet gong
AUCKLAND: New Zealand’s newest national champion is a 10yearold boy named Ted from Kerikeri.
Ted Keen has just been named the winner of Aotearoa’s Next Top Mullet, after a landslide public vote in which he collected more than twice as many votes as his closest rival.
The competition is run by the Mental Health Foundation as part of an annual awareness campaign called The Mullet Matters.
Ted said success did not come overnight but was the result of a longrunning effort.
He started growing his hair out more than three years ago, inspired by a cousin’s ‘‘business in the front, party at the back’’ hairstyle.
To be eligible for the coveted title, he had to submit a photo of his mullet and raise money for the Mental Health Foundation.
All proceeds from the competition go towards providing free mental health resources in schools, workplaces and health centres.
Ted managed to raise $840, a sizable sum for a 10yearold.
A panel of experts whittled hundreds of entrants down to 30 frontrunners, based on the quality of their mullets, and put the final choice to a public vote.
RNZ caught up with him on training night with the Kerikeri Rugby Club under11s, and couldn’t help but notice his coach also sports a carefully tended mullet.
Tom Cook said the hairstyle gave him an advantage, both on and off the field.
‘‘I’ve had it since I was 16 and never really cut it off. It’s taken me a long way in my own personal rugby career, and I hope to take all these boys further with their rugby career as well.’’
Mr Cook was not surprised by Ted’s win, given the calibre of his mullet.
‘‘It’s pretty mean. He’s taken a couple of years to grow that out — definitely given it his all and got that mullet looking pretty fancy,’’ he said.