Māori Sports Magic: Nominations for Māori Sports Awards open

Dame Lisa Carrington and husband Michael Buck take in the mural unveiled in central Auckland to celebrate Carrington's career.

Nominations for the Māori Sports Awards are now open.

The 34th Trillian Trust Māori Sports Awards will be hosted by Te Tohu Taakaro o Aotearoa Trust at Mercury Baypark Arena in Mount Maunganui on Saturday, November 30.

The black-tie event attracts more than 1000 dignitaries, celebrities and sportspeople who gather to honour the achievements of Māori athletes, administrators and coaches.

This year’s ceremony will pay tribute to Olympic gold medallists Dame Lisa Carrington, Ellesse Andrews and Stacey Waaka, as well as Māori Sports Hall of Fame inductee Riki Ellison (Ngāi Tahu) — the first New Zealander to play American football professionally in the United States and the first to win a Super Bowl.

Riki Ellison (Ngāi Tahu, No 50), pictured in 1988, is the first New Zealander to play American football professionally in the United States and the first to win a Super Bowl. Photo / Getty Images

Te Tohu Taakaro o Aotearoa Trust executive director Richard (Dick) Garratt says the closing date for nominations — which recognise sporting achievements over the past 12 months — is Friday, November 1.

Award categories include top sports administrator, umpire/referee, para athlete, coach, team, junior sportsman and woman, senior sportsman and woman, and world individual and team champions.

An overall winner will be named as the Albie Pryor Memorial Māori Sports Person of the Year, Rongomaraeroa.

“We’re urging Māori and iwi organisations as well as individuals to take up the challenge and nominate their exceptional Māori athletes without delay,” Garratt says.

Lisa Carrington was the 2019 Māori Sportsperson of the Year. Photo / Photosport

“The black-tie event is a sporting icon of Māoridom and the pinnacle of Māori sporting success, and this year’s ceremony promises to be the most exciting since its inception in 1991.”

The nomination form is available online on the Māori Sports Awards website.