11 February 2009

By John B. Phillips
NZ Masters Games Media PR Officer

An overwhelming success was the only way to describe the 20th annual ACC New Zealand Masters Games which ended in Wanganui at the weekend.  To attract 6840 competitors and supporters from 21 countries for 62 sports in the heart of a world economic recession was quite remarkable and confirms the popularity of Wanganui as a Masters Games host city.  Times may be tough internationally with many people tightening their purse strings but the 2009 Games still drew 3951 visitors, 57 per cent of the entrants,  including 253 from overseas and 195 from the South Island.  The visitors spent more than $4m, a huge majority of it in the Wanganui district, with accommodation bursting at the seams, especially over the two weekends of the Games.  Considering the state of the world finances Masters Games organisers were delighted with the final Games tally which, understandably, was down on numbers on 2007 (7320) and 2005 (7402).  The word recession was naturally “taboo” in the media promotion of the 2009 Games with some quite concerned officials in the weeks leading up to the Games and the tally just over the 5000 mark.  But, as happens year after year, the late comers once again poured their entries in with on-line registrations, which accounted for 54.72 per cent of the entrants, greatly assisting organisers..
But it was still a very heavy work load for regular office staff Mike Cronin (event manager), Hilary Goodey (event administrator) and Sophie Johnson (front line receptionist) plus a host of volunteers in the final lead-up month.  There are naturally always a few mini hiccups in organizing an event the size of the Games – the largest multi sports event held in the Southern Hemisphere – but the organisers again came through with flying colours.  After going through the experience of 2007 as “first timers” Mike Cronin and Hilary Goodey knew the routine this time around.

The true magic of Masters Games in Wanganui, without a shadow of a doubt, is the festive atmosphere in the NZ Community Trust Games Village main marquee each night.  Along trooped tired and worn out but happy competitors, many with sore limbs and injuries, to sing and dance the night away along with the Games supporters, officials and volunteers.  The World Cup Sevens atmosphere in Wellington is renown for festivities but so too is Wanganui every two years with thousands of “Oldies” lapping up the chance to let their hair down and enter into the enjoyable frivolity which goes on for 10 continuous nights.  The standard of the bands was again excellent, all entering into the 2009 Games theme – “The 60’s”.  The entertainment, which featured bands and acts from Australia plus around the South and North Islands, ranged from the nostalgia of former home city King of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Johnny Devlin (Sydney) and the Tornadoes to Steve Larkins (Freddie Mercury) and Gary Brown (Austin Powers) and the new star of rock ‘n’ roll Shane Cortese.  Add in ‘Tina Turner’, talented country and western singer Marian Burns. plus the Buddy Holly and Beatles Shows, and there was a top billing of high class acts for the packed marquee each night with Ron Heaps a fine Village DJ.  When you consider it only cost $35 to register as a Games supporter, which gave you 10 nights of entertainment and an official Games carry bag, it was a good deal.  There were 720 Games Supporters this year, 482 of them from the Wanganui region, compared with a total 556 in 2007.  Income helps finance the very costly outlay of hiring, erecting and dismantling the Games Village marquees, paying for 10 nights of live bands and acts, and hiring security guards.  Erecting the marquees, which are in place for more than three weeks to enable fittings and gear to be installed, is a major man-power undertaking.  Again Brian Frith was in charge and was deservedly officially presented with a Gold Medal for his work in having the Village and marquees in top condition each day and night.  He received excellent support from his small band of supporters and was also assisted in the erection and dismantling of the marquees by a team of volunteer prisoners.

A death at Masters Games is a rarity and it was unfortunate that a 51-year-old local ridge runner died last week.  This is only the fourth death in 11 Games in Wanganui since 1989, the others coming in swimming (an elderly visiting woman), squash (a local male player) and touch football (a Palmerston North man).  A minutes silence was observed in the main marquee in  memory of the ridge runner with event organizer Allan Caird and Games chairman Leigh Grant offering their condolences to the man’s family.  Since the inaugural Games in Wanganui 20 years ago more than 72,500 competitors, some of them in their 90’s, have competed.

Despite the total registrations being down this year 22 sports had increased registrations on 2007.
Topping the list were 11-a-side soccer (up 56 to 635), cycling (up 52 to 280), the sports accuracy challenge (36 to 105), the motor bike Poker run (36 to 46), dance sports (34 to 136) and motocross (31 to 115).  The other increases were in netball (27 to 498), blokart racing (23 to 48), rock ‘n’ toll (23 to 48), cricket (14 to 145), inline hockey (12 to 71), line dancing (12 to 28), beach volleyball (11 to 20), smallbore shooting (9 to 39), bocce (7 to 38), softball (5 to 68), water skiing (5 to 21), darts (5 to 129), euchre (4 to 65), lawn bowls (4 to 174), flying (2 to 11) and table tennis (2 to 104).  With the same entries as 2007 were dog handling (73), scrabble (30) and surfing (16).   All of the other sports declined in numbers with the heaviest being touch football (down 69 to 324), road runs and walks (60 to 741), indoor rowing (53 to 99), basketball (52 to 273), volleyball (52 to 183), petanque (35 to 135), 18-hole golf (32 to 368), triathlon (29 to 101), twilight 400 (29 to 262), squash (27 to 98), tennis (28 to 273), mountain bike racing (26 top 69), hockey (25 to 96), wood chopping (23 to 26), the duathlon (22 to 79), pool (21 to 78), duathlon (20 to 79) and gymnastics (19 to 10).

Best provincial support for the Games came from Wellington (738 registrations), Manawatu (731), Taranaki (442), Auckland (367), Bay of Plenty (335), Waikato (308), Hawke’s Bay (142) and Wairarapa (138).  Despite a clash with the Australian Masters Games, in Geelong later this month, there were still 145 Australians at the Games compared with 203 in 2007 when there was no clash.  The most popular age groups this year were 45-49 years (1278 registrations), 40-44 (1069), 50-54 (914), 35-39 (817), 55-59 (689) and 60-64 (684).

A few sports were late or had not handed in their official results on closing day.  A full coverage of results, if the individual sports have provided them to the recorders, are available on www.nzmg.com / Home of the NZ Masters Games/ Wanganui 2009/ Results.