Four of China's leading young athletes got more of a taste of Kiwiana than they'd bargained for during a whistle-stop tour of Western Bay of Plenty this week.
The four, part of the Hong Kong Sports Institute, were forced to run the gauntlet through a line-up of Bethlehem College high performance
students wielding rugby tackle pads.
The footage, some of it hilarious, was captured by Hong Kong's TVB and will air as part of the students' trip.
The four - table tennis player Chung Chiu, martial arts exponents Shun Wong and Juanita Mok, and windsurfer Ka Man - are in New Zealand for a week as guests of Zespri, who have sponsored the outstanding junior athlete awards.
Sixteen Hong Kong Sports Institute students are nominated every year, with the four selected as overall winners for 2010 for the trip to New Zealand accompanied by television and print media.
Their stay in Tauranga included a training session with Bethlehem College's high performance rugby players, time at Mount Maunganui and a visit to Kiwi360 in Te Puke.
