​75 years of Maadi Cup worthy of big celebration

New Zealand’s biggest schools sports event kicks off at Lake Ruataniwha in Twizel and it should be an occasion for celebration.

This will be the 75th anniversary of the prestigious Maadi Cup. For many years now, rowers and parents signify the approaching event not by asking friends ‘are you going to the national secondary schools rowing regatta’ which is a waste of words. All they say is ‘are you going to Maadi?’.

Enough said.

The race began in 1947 on the Wanganui River and has grown to such proportions that last year 123 schools sent 2435 students – a far cry from its early days.

This year there will be close to 1200 rowers spread over 52 events, culminating, as ever, in the girls and boys eights events, the Levin 75th Jubilee Cup and the Maadi Cup, which have drawn 18 and 16 entries respectively.

1956 Melbourne Olympic rower Allan Tong rowed that first race, staged between four schools – just a one-off race, nothing else – between Mount Albert Grammar, Wanganui Technical College, St Augustine’s of Wanganui and Auckland’s Sacred Heart.

Allan Tong who rowed in 1947 race with his 50-anniversary cap of that regatta

A rail strike meant the two Auckland crews had to be driven south by parents and were billeted for two nights. Mount Albert won, Sacred Heart second and Wanganui Technical third.

‘’I was a complete novice,’’ Tong, now 91, recalled. ‘’For both St Augustine’s and us, it was the first time we’d had an eight on the water, after three or four weeks training. Guys either learned to row the year before or were novices. It was good fun.’’

As he put it, back then ‘’no one envisaged it to be what it is today. For a number of years, it was a race for the top schools who wanted to participate.

‘’And back then who would have thought there would be schoolgirl rowing. In those days women weren’t even allowed in the boatsheds.’’

Schools rowing had actually begun in 1885 through Wanganui Collegiate. Inter-school rowing began four years later when Collegiate, Wellington College and St Patrick’s College in Wellington had a fours race over a mile, Collegiate winning by a length.

South Island schools rowing began in 1897 through Christchurch Boys’ High School, with Waitaki Boys’ High starting 10 years later and eventually Christ’s College joined in 1936.

But Auckland were a touch slower out of the blocks, Mount Albert Grammar and Sacred Heart based respectively out of the West End and Waitemata clubs, began in 1913.

But where did the name for which the regatta is now widely known come from?

In the Second World War, the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force was based at Maadi Camp in Egypt. Soldiers from the camp formed a rowing club and staged races against the Cairo Boat Club on the Nile on several occasions.

At one regatta a cup was presented by Dr Youssef Bahgat of the Cairo Rowing Club to the Maadi Camp Rowing Club ‘’as a token of friendship between the members of the Cairo Rowing Club and the ‘Kiwi’ oarsmen of the Second NZEF”.

The Camp Maadi Rowing Club in turn sent the cup to New Zealand, with the intention it be used to foster inter-school eight oared rowing. It was the New Zealand Amateur Rowing Association Council that named the cup the Maadi Cup.

Among those who took part in racing in Egypt was Viv Sanders, a New Zealand Army sergeant.

Viv Sanders a New Zealand Army sergeant who took part in the racing in Egypt

By a neat coincidence, Sanders’ great granddaughter Sophie Strang will contest her third and final Maadi rowing for Glendowie College at Ruataniwha at the 75th anniversary regatta. And by further coincidence, she too will row a single.

And she’s very proud of the family connection.

‘’Especially because he rowed the single and I’m doing the single now. It’s just a cool connection because he’s got this legacy,’’ she said.

While Mount Albert Grammar won the Maadi title five years in succession from 1954, compare that with Wanganui Collegiate, who produced a stellar run of success starting in 1963. The school won 11 Maadi titles between then and 1977.

The Springbok Shield, for the coxed four, began on Oriental Bay in 1965 – the year racing was lengthened to the now standard 2000 metres and schoolgirls joined the rowing programme in 1973, having overcome official misgivings over whether they should even be participating. The move was long overdue.

The Dawn Cup for girls under-19 four, began in 1980, and was won in its first year by Queen Charlotte College out of Picton on the Wairoa River.

There’s a story behind that name too. On finals day, the racing was running late and by dark the boys under-17 eight and girls under-19 four had not been rowed. Both were rescheduled for 6.30am the following morning. Out of that came the decision to fittingly rename the new trophy the Dawn Cup.

Their crew included Kaye Surgenor, mother of the world record holder Robbie Manson and at Ruataniwha this year, coaching her old school’s sole rower, Charlotte Lightfoot.

Kaye Surgenor who rowed in and won the first ever Dawn Cup race

The following year, the regatta was held on Lake Horowhenua. That year the Levin Borough Council was holding its 75th jubilee. The mayor felt a cup for the girls senior eight to mark the milestone would be appropriate. Wanganui Girls College were the first winners.

The event has come to be dominated by the two Christchurch rowing powerhouses, Rangi Ruru with 16 titles and St Margaret’s College with seven.

The arrival of TV coverage of the regatta in the late 1990s made a significant difference, and to that a huge debt is owed to Russell Baxter and Positive Pictures, a TV company in Wellington.

Baxter had been filming rowing for several years. He started recording finals of the secondary schools champs and the RNZ nationals. He would provide videos at the end of the regattas.

In 2000 at Lake Ruataniwha, Baxter decided it would be good for spectators on the bank to watch what was happening. So he put screens up facing out off the side of buildings so spectators could watch what was happening out on the water.

Results on the internet have let parents keep track of racing from home (and work) since 2003. Streaming video followed in 2005 and the face of Maadi coverage has never looked back.

Altogether 17 schools have won the Maadi Cup, but only three – Whanganui Collegiate (17), Christ’s College (13) and Hamilton Boys’ High (10) – have reached double figures.

Ten schools have savored the experience of lifting the Levin 75th Jubilee Cup since 1981 – 16 for Rangi Ruru and seven times by their Christchurch rivals St Margaret’s.

Hamilton Boys’ High, with 16 wins, are clearly the most dominant school in the under-18 coxed four Springbok Shield event which began in 1965.

The Dawn Cup has been won 14 times by Rangi Ruru, but there was a new name on the trophy last year, when Christchurch Girls’ High became the 16th name engraved on it.

The Star Trophy, for top overall school at the regatta has been won by six schools, Rangi Ruru’s eight titles, including last year, topping the list.

Without the support of partners and sponsors Maadi Cup would not be possible and Aon New Zealand have supported rowing in New Zealand for almost 18 years. In recent years their support has stretched to working with secondary schools directly and providing much needed equipment. They also work with Rowing NZ on an annual rowing scholarship. The Aon Maadi Cup remains one of the biggest secondary school sporting events in New Zealand and Aon are big part of bringing it to life each year.