Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Games competitors still in decline

By James Baker
Whanganui Chronicle·
13 Feb, 2017 05:00 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The Misfits who got silver in the open mixed grade netball at the Masters Games.

The Misfits who got silver in the open mixed grade netball at the Masters Games.

This year's New Zealand Masters Games in Whanganui saw another drop in the number of participants, although organises are cheered that the decline has slowed.

Since 2005 when 7402 athletes took part in the biennial event, the Games have seen roughly 500 fewer entrants at each event.

Two years ago there were 4540 participants and this year that number fell by just 161, with 4379 sportsmen and women enjoyed the 10 days of action.

Kathy Cunningham, chief executive of the Whanganui Events Trust, which took over the running of the Games this year, said the figures showed a slowing of the falling numbers.

"The drop was minimal, so we've staved off a trend, and I am very happy with our numbers," Ms Cunningham said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The reduction in the number of teams for some sports did have an impact this year.
Touch rugby was down to 10 teams from 24 two years ago and what was to be a two-day competition was wrapped up in one day.

Basketball was down by five teams to 13, and volleyball co-ordinator Miles Johnson said the sport had seen a drop from 17 teams to 15.

Netball also took a hit, with the number of teams dropping to 24 from 36, while fencing and softball had to be dropped completely due to low numbers.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

But it was not all doom and gloom for the Games, which wrapped up at the weekend - seven new sports made their way on to the programme for the first time. Among the new additions were lawn bowls, waka ama, outdoor rowing, table tennis, equestrian distance riding, squash, snooker and pool.

Other sports saw their numbers rise, with football up five teams from 38 in 2015 to 43, and hockey had six more teams.

This year saw other changes including an emphasis on entertainment, with bands such as The Magnificent Seven and Wellington group The Warratahs performing at the Games village.

Another change that drew mixed responses was a switch in venue for the village from Springvale Park to the War Memorial Centre.

Mother-of-two Lydia Deere thought the new venue didn't match up. "I went there on Friday it just wasn't as fun. I don't know why," she said.

Frances Glossop, however, thought the change brought much needed business to town.
"It's centralised so it doesn't matter what the weather's like, and it brings a buzz into town, which we need."

Ms Cunningham said organisers had yet to decide whether the switch from Springvale would be permanent.

"I'd say this year was extremely successful and it all bodes well for the 30th anniversary games in 2019."

The games attracted more than 100 competitors from overseas and more than 3000 from outside of Whanganui.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

Seabed mining project sparks alarm over impact on South Taranaki fisheries

07 Jul 03:57 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

Multiple purchase offers for pilot academy

07 Jul 03:39 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

Police seek sightings of car linked to missing person

06 Jul 11:50 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Seabed mining project sparks alarm over impact on South Taranaki fisheries

Seabed mining project sparks alarm over impact on South Taranaki fisheries

07 Jul 03:57 AM

Jamie Newell fears silt pollution will damage precious reef ecosystems.

Multiple purchase offers for pilot academy

Multiple purchase offers for pilot academy

07 Jul 03:39 AM
Police seek sightings of car linked to missing person

Police seek sightings of car linked to missing person

06 Jul 11:50 PM
How a spray painter is mastering conflict resolution with NZ Army

How a spray painter is mastering conflict resolution with NZ Army

06 Jul 05:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP