On a glorious Friday afternoon, 700 students took part in the Rāroa Intermediate School Cross Country. The track was heavy and the records looked tough to beat but the fierce students were ready to take on the devastating and tiresome Cross Country track.

Mr Price was quoted as calling it ‘The greatest all round effort in the cross country he has seen in his Rāroa sporting tenure’. As students powered up the steep Johnsonville hills it was great to see them put the effort in for the last 100m in front of the fans.

The Year 7 girls were up first and set a fantastic example for the rest of the school and it was Sianne Blignaut followed closely by Sophie Hoar and Lily McAree who took the silverware.

The Year 7 boys were full of enthusiasm at the startline which continued throughout the race and it was Tyler Gilmour, Jake Charity and Cohen Donn who pipped a number of young fellas for the points.

The Year 8 girls were out to prove themselves as elite athletes and took off quickly, a pace that was maintained by Hannah Wade, Abbey Kemp and Kiera Vlaar who came home in the top 3 places.

The Year 8 boys was a fiercely contested race. It was very impressive to see the depth on display in the field. Well done to Rhys Elliott-O’Neill, Zach Graham and Nikhil Ranchord for coming home in the 1, 2, and 3 spots.

It was a historic day for Uru who took out the House competition narrowly beating out Raki for the top spot. A first time win for Uru in an athletic event.

Thank you to all the people who helped make the afternoon a success, especially Mr Mansfield who did a lot of the hard mahi in the background.