It was a fun idea. Throw a big party, get lots of well-known Kiwis involved and try to make getting stabbed in the arm with a needle sound fun. A tough sell indeed, but with 861,500 Kiwis tuning in to the TV coverage across Three, TVNZ, Maori TV and digital channels, not to mention the record-breaking number of New Zealanders who showed up to get jabbed, the campaign was a resounding success.
By 3pm yesterday, New Zealand had smashed Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's original target of 100,000 vaccinations for the day, so she then set her sights on 150,000. The second target wasn't quite reached, but by 10pm on Saturday, 129,965 doses had been given. That is roughly 2.5 per cent of the population.
The positive numbers aside, there were some show-stopping moments throughout the Vaxathon that are worth revisiting.
Near the top of the joyful moments of the Vaxathon would have to be Dr Ashley Bloomfield's dancing. The director general of health was caught on camera breaking out some enthusiastic dance moves at a Super Saturday event.
Speaking afterwards, Bloomfield said he had been "waiting all day to have a dance out here in Porirua". Bloomfield chose to shake his groove thing during a live performance of The Roimata Song, while wearing a colourful lei.
