Sport and the Indian Community in New Zealand
Sport has been an important bridge connecting the Indian community with the wider community and has also fostered a sense of collective identity among New Zealand Indians. On Queen’s Birthday Weekend, Pukekohe will host the 50th New Zealand Indian Sports Association Hockey Tournament (popularly known as Queen’s Birthday Tournament or QBT). The event is likely to attract upwards of 1000 spectators and players and serves as both a sporting tournament and a gathering point for New Zealand Indians.
The venue is an apt illustration of the contribution of the Indian community towards sport in New Zealand because Pukekohe Indian Sports Club made a significant financial contribution to funding the hockey turf where the tournament will take place. Moreover, the club itself is credited with playing a major role in helping Indians engage with the wider community, something that was very important given the hostility Indian immigrants earlier experienced in Pukekohe and other parts of New Zealand.
The history of Indian sport in New Zealand extends back nearly one hundred years. Tours to New Zealand by Indian Hockey teams in 1926, 1935 and 1938 provided fleeting moments where Indian achievements were applauded in the mainstream press, in contrast to the openly racist comments often levelled against Asian immigration. During these tours the Indian teams were praised for their skilled play and attracted record crowds.
They also formed links with Maori, playing a match against a Maori team in Rotorua 1935, in exchange for which Maori presented a shield to the Indian Hockey Federation. These teams, especially the legendary Dhyan Chand, also inspired the formation of Indian Sports Clubs in Wellington in 1935 and Christchurch and Auckland in 1936. At this time there were only 1200 Indians in New Zealand and many of these were young men working very long hours for low pay. Playing under the banner of an Indian Sports Club allowed young Indians to mix with the then predominantly European community while also promoting their own identity.
After the Second World War more Indian women came to New Zealand and sporting exchanges became occasions when Indian families, many of whom were of Gujarati ancestry, could reconnect with each other. The earliest Indian tournament, the Coronation Tournament was held on Queen’s Birthday Weekend in Wellington in 1953 and interest in these tournaments, and a match by a New Zealand Indian Team against the visiting Indian Wanderers hockey team in 1955 stimulated interest in forming a national Indian Sports Association, which occurred in 1962.
So far as is known, the New Zealand Indian Sports Association (NZISA) is unique in that it coordinates events for a network of eight member clubs: Christchurch, Wellington, Central Districts, Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Pukekohe, Auckland and North Harbour which, in 2012 had 2101 members and 1238 active players. Since its inception, NZISA has sought to foster Indian sport and provide opportunities for Indian players to progress to the highest levels. Beginning with a match against the Wellington Hockey Team in 1966, it has since played against international teams (including India on three occasions) and sent a New Zealand Indian team to the Oceania Hockey Federation’s Pacific Cup in Fiji in 2008.
Although hockey is the main sport in which Indians participate, NZISA also includes netball and soccer in its annual tournament and also oversees an annual golf tournament. Participation in sport has aided recognition of the administrative ability of Indians. Ramesh Patel, the first Indian to play for New Zealand in hockey, was Chief Executive Officer of the New Zealand Hockey Federation for over twenty years.
The New Zealand Indian community has diversified since 1987, Wellington now has a Punjabi Badminton Club and a Tamil Sports Club as well as the Wellington Indian Sports Club, but one common element is that Indian sports clubs have enabled Indians to enjoy each other’s company and mix with the wider community.
Sport has been an important bridge connecting the Indian community with the wider community and has also fostered a sense of collective identity among New Zealand Indians. On Queen’s Birthday Weekend, Pukekohe will host the 50th New Zealand Indian Sports Association Hockey Tournament (popularly...
Sport has been an important bridge connecting the Indian community with the wider community and has also fostered a sense of collective identity among New Zealand Indians. On Queen’s Birthday Weekend, Pukekohe will host the 50th New Zealand Indian Sports Association Hockey Tournament (popularly known as Queen’s Birthday Tournament or QBT). The event is likely to attract upwards of 1000 spectators and players and serves as both a sporting tournament and a gathering point for New Zealand Indians.
The venue is an apt illustration of the contribution of the Indian community towards sport in New Zealand because Pukekohe Indian Sports Club made a significant financial contribution to funding the hockey turf where the tournament will take place. Moreover, the club itself is credited with playing a major role in helping Indians engage with the wider community, something that was very important given the hostility Indian immigrants earlier experienced in Pukekohe and other parts of New Zealand.
The history of Indian sport in New Zealand extends back nearly one hundred years. Tours to New Zealand by Indian Hockey teams in 1926, 1935 and 1938 provided fleeting moments where Indian achievements were applauded in the mainstream press, in contrast to the openly racist comments often levelled against Asian immigration. During these tours the Indian teams were praised for their skilled play and attracted record crowds.
They also formed links with Maori, playing a match against a Maori team in Rotorua 1935, in exchange for which Maori presented a shield to the Indian Hockey Federation. These teams, especially the legendary Dhyan Chand, also inspired the formation of Indian Sports Clubs in Wellington in 1935 and Christchurch and Auckland in 1936. At this time there were only 1200 Indians in New Zealand and many of these were young men working very long hours for low pay. Playing under the banner of an Indian Sports Club allowed young Indians to mix with the then predominantly European community while also promoting their own identity.
After the Second World War more Indian women came to New Zealand and sporting exchanges became occasions when Indian families, many of whom were of Gujarati ancestry, could reconnect with each other. The earliest Indian tournament, the Coronation Tournament was held on Queen’s Birthday Weekend in Wellington in 1953 and interest in these tournaments, and a match by a New Zealand Indian Team against the visiting Indian Wanderers hockey team in 1955 stimulated interest in forming a national Indian Sports Association, which occurred in 1962.
So far as is known, the New Zealand Indian Sports Association (NZISA) is unique in that it coordinates events for a network of eight member clubs: Christchurch, Wellington, Central Districts, Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Pukekohe, Auckland and North Harbour which, in 2012 had 2101 members and 1238 active players. Since its inception, NZISA has sought to foster Indian sport and provide opportunities for Indian players to progress to the highest levels. Beginning with a match against the Wellington Hockey Team in 1966, it has since played against international teams (including India on three occasions) and sent a New Zealand Indian team to the Oceania Hockey Federation’s Pacific Cup in Fiji in 2008.
Although hockey is the main sport in which Indians participate, NZISA also includes netball and soccer in its annual tournament and also oversees an annual golf tournament. Participation in sport has aided recognition of the administrative ability of Indians. Ramesh Patel, the first Indian to play for New Zealand in hockey, was Chief Executive Officer of the New Zealand Hockey Federation for over twenty years.
The New Zealand Indian community has diversified since 1987, Wellington now has a Punjabi Badminton Club and a Tamil Sports Club as well as the Wellington Indian Sports Club, but one common element is that Indian sports clubs have enabled Indians to enjoy each other’s company and mix with the wider community.
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