AIMS Games: 27 athletes celebrate their birthdays

Mount Maunganui Intermediate girls' rugby 7s competitor Hinewai Ngatai (middle) celebrates her 12th birthday with team-mates Chakira Watts, 13, (left) and 11-year-old Kalo Afu (far right). Photo / George Novak

Twenty-seven of the 2015 NZCT Aims Games athletes celebrated their birthdays on Sunday among 8000 of their peers.

That includes Hinewai Ngatai from Mount Maunganui Intermediate, who turned 12 on Sunday, with 20 other AIMS Games athletes. Another seven turned 13.

Sharing the same birthday as Hinewai was Connor Wilmhurst from Katikati College, who is competing in the mixed hockey tournament, while Otumoetai Intermediate Gymsport competitor Bryce Porter turned 13.

Hinewai and her teammates were in the thick of practice at Mount Maunganui Intermediate yesterday ahead of the start of pool play in the girls' rugby sevens tournament at Waipuna Park, which kicks off at 10.20am today.

The unique birthdays milestone was revealed at the official opening of the AIMS Games at ASB Baypark Arena on Sunday night by master of ceremonies Greg Cumming.

A young woman of few words, Hinewai said there was no doubt this birthday felt "extra special".

Not only did she celebrate with a special family lunch on Sunday, then attended the "brilliant" AIMS Games gala opening ceremony that night, but yesterday she and her rugby sevens team-mates featured on the TVNZ Breakfast programme.

They also attended the AIMS Games competition breakfast at Trinity Wharf, where they got to meet and talk to Black Fern Gemma Flynn, she said.

The eldest of seven children, Hinewai said it'd been a "fantastic" birthday.

However, the icing on the cake would be making the sevens final on Thursday and taking home the trophy.

There was no doubt the Royal Oak Intermediate team, who won the silver medal at last year's AIMS Games, would be hard to beat, she said.

NZCT AIMS Games tournament director Vicki Semple said: "The AIMS Games Trust want to wish all the competitors having their birthday this week a 'very happy birthday'.

"Wow what a place to celebrate - a sporting party with 8000 of your peers." During the week-long tournament, 8007 athletes from 261 schools will compete in 19 sporting codes for honours in what is the biggest youth multi-sport event in Australasia.

In 2004, at the first AIMS Games, 750 competitors from 17 schools competed in four sports.