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The 2026 AIMS Games in Tauranga, held earlier this month, brought together more than 14,000 students from more than 430 schools, with Mahurangi College and Wellsford School representing the Rodney area in eight of the 27 sports contested.
Mahurangi College had a delegation of around 80 students.
The school entered boys’ teams in basketball, football and hockey, with the football team putting in a strong performance, winning six of the nine games played. The teams finished 63rd, 35th and 14th respectively.
The girls also competed in hockey, finishing 20th, while the netball team finished 80th overall.
The mixed rip rugby team finished 15th, recording seven wins from the 11 games. One of the players, Maximus Tasker, also competed in cross country, finishing 25th in a field of 155 competitors.
Sports coordinator Georgina Brierly said this was her third time coordinating the event, but her fourth AIMS Games overall, having competed as a student in 2013.
“The scale of AIMS is incredible,” she said. “It is an exceptionally well-run event considering its size. I really enjoyed seeing so many young students get the opportunity to have such an awesome week playing sport with their mates.
It’s not just about the sport either, you get to make friends with kids from all over the country, play against some really talented athletes and take away so many great learnings and experiences.”
Wellsford School also had some strong results, with student Rylee-Jane Clapham finishing 26th out of 148 competitors in the three-kilometre cross country event.
Spencer Dinsdale also competed in the same event, finishing 73rd.
In the team events, the boys’ futsal team finished 53rd overall, recording three wins during the competition, while the girls’ netball team finished 72nd with five wins.
Sports coordinator Teck Wee praised the students’ energy, determination and sportsmanship throughout the tournament.
“We couldn’t be prouder of the effort our students put in to represent Wellsford with so much heart.”
