𝗧𝘂̄ 𝗠𝗮𝗶 𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗸𝗶 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀
- Craig Ashworth
- Dec 2, 2025
- 3 min read
The three-day Tū Mai Taranaki culture and sports festival has again forged bonds within and between iwi across Taranaki.
Every two years Tū Mai celebrates iwi of Taranaki Maunga competing, learning and simply being together.
Enrolling her tamariki in te reo education reconnected Leesha Luke to her culture and on Sunday she took the kapa haka stage for the first time, standing for Ngāruahine.
“I didn't feel like I was adequate because we were brought up quite mainstream.
“Now I feel empowered, I’ll probably do it again for the next Tū Mai.”
In contrast Pearl Luke has been in kapa for 17 years, since she was 14.
“This is what we live for,” she said.
“This is the culture. This is us. This is te ao Māori.”
Tū Mai Taranaki began in 2009 to promote Taranakitanga, whakawhanaungatanga and kotahitanga – Taranaki knowledge and practice, strengthening relationships, and unity.
Hosting rotates through the eight officially-recognised iwi and this year the invitation from Taranaki Iwi saw up to 5000 uri in the beach town Ōpunakē for the ninth Tū Mai.
Kapa haka and wānanga are cultural mainstays of the festival – this year kumara gardens were planted and a hīkoi explored nearby Te Namu Pā.
The 2025 theme was ‘te whāingaroatanga o te kura’: the lifelong pursuit of collective and individual understanding, identity and excellence, based on stories of Te Moungaroa, the captain of Kurahaupō ancestral waka.
Tū Mai Taranaki has expanded beyond sports like rugby league and netball into some 30 activities including chess, bowls, darts, ki-o-rahi and this year euchre.
This year also saw surfing introduced, emphasising Taranaki Iwi’s rohe along the region’s western coast.
Te Oti Katene stood for Ngāruahine kapa haka, competed in netball, and stressed the iwi’s touch rugby team was undefeated.
Katene said competition in rugby league nines remained fierce but over the years the urge to win in other codes had faded, replaced by “enjoying the atmosphere” of whanaungatanga.
“Those extra activities that've been brought in, it's just been so lovely,” he said.
“It's an iwi and whānau collective kaupapa, where we come together and we meet people we didn't know we were related to it.”
“You make new connections by meeting one of your cuzzies that's playing for Ngāti Tama, or Ruanui.”
Te Kāhui o Taranaki iwi agency chair Jacqui King spent much of Saturday with pāhake (kaumātua) “and they were having an absolute ball.”
“This is the stuff that we do so well,” said King.
“Taking care of each other, manaaki, whanaungatanga, kotahitanga: these critical components of what makes us Māori is what we get to celebrate.”
“Whanau playing for whanau… when the chips are down and people need to step in for each other, that's exactly what they do.”
King said Ōpunakē had shown small towns could successfully host the growing event.
Also pointing to the future was an art exhibition by eight contemporary artists using materials and images from the whale Te Karu Kōteoteo, which was processed after washing ashore nearby.
Artists used bone and other parts of the whale and also recovered mātauranga for utilising baleen – the fibre whales use instead of teeth to filter food from the water.
The exhibition was a first for Tū Mai and supported by New Plymouth’s Govett Brewster Art Gallery.
The gallery’s Māori arts curator Taarati Taiaroa said a panel kōrero challenged iwi to set their own arts strategies.
Taiaroa said it was great having the art outside the gallery and next door to the kapa haka.
“We've got lots of whānau coming through and recognising the forms and the visual languages in the mahi.
“We’ve literally had hundreds and hundreds through.”
Most events had points attached and Ngāti Ruanui emerged victorious, followed by hosts
Taranaki Iwi and their neighbours Ngāruahine in third place.
Te Ātiawa will host the tenth Tū Mai Taranaki in 2027.
nā Craig Ashworth craig@tekorimako.co.nz
𝙇𝘿𝙍 𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙮 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙢 𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙏𝙚 𝙆𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙤 𝙤 𝙏𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙠𝙞 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙏𝙚 𝙍𝙚𝙤 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙞 𝙤 𝘼𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙖 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙞 𝙩𝙚 𝙈𝙤𝙩𝙪
Comments