Hikos Road to the Games

Born and bred in Rotoiti,, Rotorua, Hiko o te rangi Curtis has whakapapa links to Ngāti Rongomai, Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue and Taranaki Iwi. He is a Year 13 student at Te Wharekura o Ngāti Rongomai, last year as a Year 12 students, Hiko o te rangi successfully attained his NCEA Level 3 Certificate with Excellence and his University Entrance.

Hiko is a charismatic young leader within his kura , his community and his iwi. His upbringing in Te Ao Māori is evident in everything he does.

Hikos Crossfit journey began in earnest in 2016. At age 12 Hiko decided that going to the World Crossfit Games would be his long term goal, and with the support of his whānau, training began in earnest.

Crossfit is based on functional movements, and these movements reflect the best aspects of gymnastics, weightlifting, running, rowing and more. These are the core movements of life.

In 2019 Hiko was successful in securing one of ten spots available to attend the Crossfit Games, competing first in a Worldwide Open competition, then after finishing in the top 200, competed in a gruelling online qualifier competition that saw only the top 10 of the world fittest teenagers invited to the 2019 Crossfit Games.

This year Hiko again entered the Open, finishing that competition within the top 20 boys worldwide (ages 16/7). From there he qualified for the online qualifier competition where Hiko ultimately finished 8th. The top 20 of each age group division and open grades will have secured a ticket to the Games. From tens of thousands of competitors worldwide competing in the first tier events, through to the final qualifying events, the

Crossfit Games will see a handful of the most elite Crossfit athletes converge on the Alliant Stadium, Madison Wisconsin to compete this July 27 to Aug 3rd 2021.

With the advantage of experiencing the standard needed at the Games to viably compete, Hiko is more focussed and adamant to reach his goal of a podium spot at this years games.

Hiko trains twice a day 6 days a week, most often training alone. This has been his focus for the last 6 years - an enduring passion not often seen in rangatahi his age.

Travelling to compete at this years competition has seen us experience many compounding factors that has made it more challenging to navigate his successful participation. The pandemic, and limited travel worldwide has raised costs of air travel and accomodation. Securing a NZ MIQ voucher and paying for Quarantine on our return has also been a stressful experience.

Raising sufficient funds for Hiko and his team to participate has been a challenging experience.

We hope you are able to donate to Hiko and his road to the games as we move quickly towards his departure date.