Former Whanganui politician Harete Hipango appointed to Sports Tribunal of New Zealand

Harete Hipango has a lifelong involvement and interest in sport. Photo / NZME

Former Whanganui MP Harete Hipango is one of four new appointments to the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand.

Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop announced the appointments last week.

“The Sports Tribunal of New Zealand does important work to ensure that national sport organisations and other parties to a sport dispute, such as athletes, have access to an affordable, just and speedy means of resolving a sport dispute,” Bishop said.

The main types of disputes the Sports Tribunal hears are anti-doping violations, appeals against disciplinary decisions or not being selected for a national team, and other sports-related disputes referred by agreement of all the parties.

“The Governor-General, on Cabinet’s recommendation, has agreed to appoint four new members to the tribunal. These four appointments ensure that collectively, the tribunal will continue to have excellent and relevant knowledge and skills, including an appropriate mix of governance experience, sports law, sports participation and administration.”

Hipango (Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Apa, Nga Rauru Kītahi and Ngāti Tamakōpiri) served six years as a parliamentarian, including as Whanganui MP from 2017 to 2020 and as a National Party list MP from June 2021 (following the resignation of Nick Smith) to 2023. She unsuccessfully contested the Te Tai Hauāuru seat in the October election, the first National MP in more than 20 years to stand in a Māori electorate.

Before entering Parliament, she was a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and included involvement in mediation, arbitration and tribunal work. Hipango has a lifetime involvement and interest in sport, including participation at representative level as well as coaching, managing, event organising and parent support in a variety of sports — netball, rowing, rugby, tennis, athletics and basketball.

The other new members of the tribunal are Andrea Twaddle, Dr Sarah Beable and Sam Fellows.