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4.1 From which region did outrigger canoe
racing emanate from?
Contemporary outrigger canoe paddling has its origins in
the Hawaiian Islands, though there is evidence that it existed
in other parts of Polynesia, including Samoa and French
Polynesia.
4.2 What are the origins behind outrigger
canoe racing?
All that we know about outrigger canoe racing stems from
the Hawaiian Islands. However records taken by early European
explores confirm that canoe racing was indeed practiced
in island regions of the Pacific where the canoe was used
as the principal mode of transportation. Outrigger canoe
racing in Tonga for example was very popular even during
the 1830's.
Whilst it was also practiced in Tahiti it was not undertaken
with any great regularity. During the 1880's with the founding
of the July 14th Bastille celebrations, canoe racing became
a regular event, but it was the only time at which racing
was practiced. It was not until after 1976 that outrigger
canoe racing began to become a regular year round sport.
However, the Tahitians have made up for lost time, being
now considered the people to beat, refining the sport to
a fine art, absorbing it into their culture with great enthusiasm.
For the ancient Hawaiians, the outrigger canoe was a natural
extension of their everyday life and so to it was for their
recreation. Whether canoe surfing or racing, the canoe was
used in play to hone the skills of the paddlers and steersman
as a means of ensuring survival on the ocean. Beyond this,
canoe racing itself formed the basis of entertainment for
the general population. Much pride was gained in a canoe
race victory, for the village and the chief. Gambling added
spice to the event, putting at stake land and possessions.
Unfortunately for the playful Hawaiians, the sport was outlawed
soon after 1820 by an act of divine intervention with the
arrival of the Boston Missionaries.
4.3 What are the origins behind contemporary outrigger
canoe racing?
The native Hawaiian spirit was immersed in
an ocean way of life and a sense of playfulness. The ocean
was their lifeblood and playground and their physical needs
were being denied what came so naturally to them by the
imposition established by the missionaries. This denied
their true identity as Polynesians.
In 1875 when King David Kalakaua a great lover of water
sports came to reign, he instigated the rebirth of canoe
paddle and sailing races, surfing and Hawaiian song and
dance. The Hawaiians needed little encouragement and in
1908 the first formal outrigger canoe club was founded,
the Outrigger Canoe Club of Hawaii by a small group of Haole
(European) businessman followed by the Hui Nalu (Surfing
Club), formerly chartered by a group of Hawaiian surfers
to promote surfing and swimming. By 1910 these two clubs
began pitting their canoe crews against one another and
so canoe racing was reborn.
4.4 At what point did the sport become "organised"
as such?
Outrigger canoe racing though taken seriously was still
very much randomly practiced and it was not until 1922 that
the first fully fledged regatta was staged. Not until 1940
was it decided that outrigger canoe racing needed to have
formalized rules and regulations to avoid some of the disagreements
which began to arise as the sport took on greater status
and importance. In 1950 the Hawaiian Canoe Racing and Surfing
Association was founded later changing its name to the Hawaiian
Canoe Racing Association (HCRA) to govern and set rulings
for organised outrigger canoe racing throughout the Hawaiian
Islands.
4.5 How many clubs and paddlers are there in Hawaii
today?
There are now well over 60 clubs and 10,000
active outrigger canoeists throughout the Hawaiian Islands.
The sport is recognized as the Islands national sport, however
their is some disappointment at the lack of support that
it is given through government fundings. The sport is an
intrinsic part of Hawaiian culture though of course many
of European origin, participate in a sport which for many
is a lifestyle and a lifetime dedication.
4.6 Where is outrigger canoe racing practiced
today?
Outrigger canoe racing has now spread from its contemporary
origins in Hawaii, to all parts of the Pacific, throughout
Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia. Participating countries
and regions include; Australia,
American Samoa, California,
Canada,
Cook Islands, Easter Islands, Fiji, Guam, Hawaii, ( Maui,
Oahu)
Hong Kong, Marianas Islands, New Caledonia, New Zealand,
Oregon,Tahiti,
Tonga, Wallis Futuna, Washington
State, Western Samoa and beyond this to South
Africa, Britain, France and Italy with teams and individuals
now paddling in international races from Hungary, Austria
and Sweden.
In addition to this several native American Indian groups
participate, including the Stahlo Nation and a group under
the banner of the Native Participation Committee in Canada.
Outrigger canoe racing is rapidly expanding to become a
truly global sport.
4.7 Are cultural links important in the spread
of outrigger canoe racing?
To the smaller island regions of the Pacific it is a central
factor. All island groups of Oceania and the native cultures
that exist throughout are intrinsically linked to the canoe,
and more specifically the outrigger canoe. Taken a step
further you can say with some accuracy that individual ancestry
can be linked back to one great canoe journey and indeed
in places such as New Zealand this is the case to the degree
that many Maori can name the canoe on which their ancestors
traveled to arrive in the land they called, Aotearoa, Land
of the Long White Cloud. Participation in outrigger canoeing
is to honour their past, their cultural origins, their ancestors
and to find renewed cultural pride, identity and skills
lost in a distant past.
4.8 In what countries is outrigger canoeing a national
sport?
From a purely historical and cultural viewpoint,
outrigger canoe racing is considered the unofficial national
sport of the Hawaiian Islands - its government preferring
to hold eurocentric sports in higher esteem. Hawaii remains
a part of Polynesia and therefore from that perspective
it can be considered the national sport. Compare this with
French Polynesia, where outrigger canoe racing is the official
national sport,supported by the government and more prestigious
than all other sports and given plenty of media coverage
on TV, having super-stars of paddling and much sponsorship. |
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