Making mark on mats and track

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

GISBORNE students are making their mark on the mats, while a Campion College BMX rider has tasted bronze success at the AIMS Games International Sporting Championships in the Bay of Plenty.

Twelve Gisborne students have advanced to post-section play in the indoor bowls at Mt Maunganui.

Ten of those qualifiers are from Ilminster — Anna Akuhata-Brown (who won three of her four games), Joel Akuhata-Brown (4 wins), Tutoro Brown-Rangihuna (3), Wade Brunt (3), Oliver Gillies (4), Rata Jamieson (3), Zharia Marsh (3), Fiona Rangiuaia (4), Braden Sycamore (3) and Sian Williams (3).

They joined Gisborne Intermediate’s Nathan Trowell and Dylan Foster, who qualified on Monday.

Campion College student Ruby-Anne Smith had a day to remember on the Tauranga BMX track yesterday. She was third in the Year 7 girls’ time trial.

Wharekahika Gray was the best of the Tolaga Bay Area School Kuranui contingent in the badminton. He had four wins and a loss in group play to place second in his group and qualify for the Division 2 playoffs. He was beaten 31-14 in Round 1.

Jordine White, Te Riringa o Te Ra Babbington-Parata and Jahlaine Porter-Smyth advanced to the Division 4 quarterfinals of the girls’ singles.

Gisborne Intermediate placed eighth in the aerobics and ninth in the hip hop in the performance groups competition.

The Ilminster boys’ basketball team lost to Hastings Intermediate in their final pool game yesterday to place third in their pool, then beat Hobsonville School 20-13 in their first crossover game.

Gisborne Intermediate squash player Jacob Haynes is into the semifinals of the playoffs for 33rd to 64th in the boys’ singles.

Gisborne Intermediate golfer Zach Rolls is sitting 18th in the boys’ stableford after two rounds. He shot 94-23-71 for 37 points at Te Puke course yesterday to go with his opening-round 94-23-71 for 34 on the Omokoroa course.

One of the hard-luck stories of the champs so far is Gisborne Intermediate BMX rider Josh Phillips, who suffered a concussion and minor injuries in a crash in practice on Monday.

The week-long champs feature 10,000 students from 302 schools competing in 21 sporting codes.