Craig Manson, of Ashburton, got some training in before heading to Australia last weekend to defend the East Coast championship title. Photo / David Hill
Craig Manson, of Ashburton, got some training in before heading to Australia last weekend to defend the East Coast championship title. Photo / David Hill
The day after the earthquake which devastated their community, John and Tish Ballagh met friends at the Hororata Cafe.
Little did they know back in September 2010 that a meeting of six locals over coffee would lead to creating New Zealand's biggest Highland Games and largest one-day Highland dancing competition.
Eight years on from the 7.1 magnitude earthquake which struck at 4.26am on September 4, 2010, the Ballaghs reflected on what they had achieved, as they watched athletes train at the Hororata Domain on Saturday, September 8, in preparation for the 7th annual Highland Games in November.
''We started meeting the day after the earthquakes and then every Saturday for about a year and drank a lot of coffee,'' Mr Ballagh said.
''We eventually started planning a Highland Games, which no-one knew a hell of a lot about.''
John and Tish Ballagh are proud of how the Hororata Highland Games has grown. Photo / David Hill
The original intention was to raise funds to restore the historic St John's Anglican Church, but attention quickly turned to how they could support other community projects.
''We never thought it was going to grow like this, but we've got the Hororata Community Trust in behind us.
''When we first started, we wanted to make Hororata an end destination and we've certainly done that with the games in November and the Night Glow event in March.''
Mr Ballagh said the community feeling was ''generally positive'' eight years on, but there were still some homes waiting to be repaired.
The community has turned its attention to revamping the community centre, while the fate of the church remains in limbo, pending a decision by the Christchurch Diocese's Church Property Trust.
Mr Ballagh said the Hororata Highland Games was continuing to grow and this year new events had been added, including a ''teen warrior'' competition for 15 to 17-year-olds and a drum major mace flourishing contest.
It was also one of the few Highland Games in New Zealand and Australia with a women's competition, and there were plans to introduce an elite Oceania championship for women alongside the men's championship.
This year's training day attracted 10 adult competitors, including five women, under the guidance of veteran Highland Games athlete Pat Hellier, of Auckland, while 10 children and teachers from local schools also received training.
English migrant Vick Sefton, who now lives near West Melton, said competing in the games was something to tick off her ''bucket list''.
Craig Manson, of Ashburton, first competed in the games in 2016 and has since gone on to win the Australian Highland Games championship.
A Facebook page, ''Canterbury Highland Games Throwers of Heavy Things'', has been created to support competitors.
Entries are open for the seventh annual Hororata Highland Games, to held in the Hororata Domain on Saturday, November 10.
