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Date: October 15-17, 2003 - LEEWARD ISLANDS
 HAWAIKI NUI VA’A 2003 : The canoe race of the year, between Huahine, Raiatea, Tahaa and Bora-Bora
Hard times for the stars... Fareara (Huahine), gives a lesson to the champions. Amateurs largely outdo the favorites.
Hawaiki Nui Va'a 2003: the greatest canoe race |
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Our report on the race
This was quite a great surprise for most Polynesians fans, enthused by the merciless fights between the best va'a (outrigger canoe) teams during this 2003 edition of the Hawaiki Nui.  After three days of cut-throat competition, two teams "Fareara" (from Huahine) and "Tamarii Vairao" (Tahiti's Peninsula) proved that they could do better and more than the top favorites, generally sponsored at the financial as well as at the technolical level. "Ra’i" first, but also the two "Shell Va'a" teams and mostly "Pirae Va’a Mobil" (also two teams), were eaten alive by the outsiders, true amateur clubs in a race becoming mincreasingly professional.
  BEFORE THE RACE
October 12, 2003, Young Tahitian man, Moehau Paie, was crowned Europe's Outrigger Canoe Champion in the V1 category during the "Va'a" European Championship organized in the Bay of the Somme (France) over distance of about 20 km. Thanks to the dynamism of France's Polynesian Association, the va’a (the polynesian canoe) is now present in France's Kayak Championship with crew composed of Polynesian expatriates and Metropolitan French canoers.
In Hawaï, the Tahitian team "Ra'i", lead by Lewis Laughlin, the unquestioned champion of Polynesian canoe racing, was unable to repeat its 2002 feat (Gold Medal) and finished only seventh in this 52nd edition of the Molokai (Hawaii) International canoe race run on 67 kilometer between the islands of Molokai and Oahu. The winners were the International "Team Hawaii-New Zealand" team, before the "Lanikai" Hawaiian crew.
HAWAIKI NUI VAA’A 2003 - THE RACE
 Over 2,500 canoe racers finally enrolled in this long inter-island Hawaiki Nui race taking place October 15 through 17, 2003 in the heart of the Leeward Islands in French Polynesia. For three days, over a hundred canoes competed on the race's 129 kilometers between Huahine, Raiatea, Taha'a and Bora Bora. 75 canoes in the "adult men" category, 16 canoes in the "women" category and 36 canoes in the "junior" category, a category where the number of canoes practically doubled since last year, a sign of the healthy condition of this traditional Polynesian sport.
We remind you that the first Hawaiki Nui Va'a race took place in 1992, and that over more than ten years, this international race already included teams from Hawaii, California, New Zealand and New Caledonia, but also from Germany and Yugoslavia.
Hawaiki Nui va'a is the last event in the year's International Va'a races calendar, which begins in March with the "Hauraki Hoe" in Auckland (New Zealand), the "Hamilton Cup" in Australia in June, the "Catalina Classic" in Newport, California in August, the "Liliuokalani Queen" in Kona (Hawaii) in September, and finally the famous "Molokai" race in October in Honolulu (Hawaii).
1ST STAGE (between HUAHINE and RAIATEA) - OCTOBER 15:
 The first stage was run over 44.5 Km between the islands of Huahine and Raiatea under a nice blue skies favorable to canoe racing. "Fareara" (Huahine) quickly took the lead from the start through the Fare pass and kept it to the finish line. This team composed of strongly motivated young canoers, achieved the impressive time of 3h 27mn, leaving the second team, "Pirae Va'a Mobil", one of the greatest favorites, about 4 minutes behind.
Another young team, "Tamarii Vairao" created the second surprise in this first stage when it finished third (3h 34mn). Among other favorites, the "Shell Va'a" A and B teams finished respectively fifth and fourth in that stage.
As to "Ra'i", Lewis Laughlin's team, it was racing with a new canoe, specially designed for Hawaiki Nui's extreme conditions, but it finished only... 16th. Another upset for one of the race's greatest favorites.
2ND STAGE (between RAIATEA and TAHAA) - OCTOBER 16:
 Hawaiki Nui's second stage was run over 26 km, between Raiatea and Tahaa, and was won by the "Shell Va'a B" team. Would the favorites take back the lead? Not really... "Shell Va'a B" had won the second stage inside the Raiatea and Tahaa lagoon in 1h 58mn, but the "Fareara" team, who won the first stage the day before, nevertheless finished second less than a minute behind the winner (1h 59mn), while "Shell Va'a A" finished third in 2 hours. A crowded finish line…!
Also worth mentioning "Tamarii Vairao" (from Tahiti's Peninsula), that nobody expected the day before at the third place, finished fourth in this stage. On the other hand, the "Pirae Va'a Mobil A" team, which made second the day before, was a total disaster in the last kilometers between Raiatea and Tahaa; they were not even among the top ten of that day.
In the General Ranking before the last stage, "Fareara" is first (2 points), before "Shell Va'a B" (4 points). General Ranking is indeed established in points relative to the position of each team at the end of each stage and not by adding their respective times. Unless there was an upset, final victory had to go to one of these two teams. But "Tamarii Vairao", third, plaid the outsider with 7 points…
3RD STAGE (between TAHAA and BORA BORA) - OCTOBER 17:
 The young "Fareara" team from Huahine, single-handedly won the 12th edition of Hawaiki Nui Va’a when winning the race's third and last stage, between Tahaa and Bora Bora. All along the 58 Km separating these two islands, "Fareara" again made the difference distancing his main adversaries. "Shell Va'a B", its main rival in the General ranking, was overwhelmed by the younger team, despite a last show of strength, but they couldn't do better. The kids from "Fareara" were truly the best. Two other teams created surprises during this stage: "Nunue" (Bora-Bora), and mostly "Tereva" (Moorea) who finished second in that stage. Still ahead in the last kilometere, "Tereva Moorea" was finally passed by "Fareara" inside the Bora Bora lagoon, just a stone throw from the finish line. "Shell Va'a B" broke down in the last kilometers and finished only eighth, to "Tamarii Vairao's" greatest delight.
Hawaiki Nui Va’a 2003's General Ranking: The three biggest favorites behind the new stars of Polynesian va'a.
"Fareara", of Huahine, totally controlled the race, winning two stage victories (first and third) and finishing second in the second stage. The race's second place goes finally to the team "Tamarii Vairao", of Tahiti's Peninsula, who defied all odds, both with its performance and mostly with its regularity.
The Favorites: "Shell Va’a B", "Shell Va’a A", "Pirae Va'a Mobil A" finished respectively third, fourth and fifth.
This last day of competition ended up on the beach in Matira, Bora Bora in the atmosphere of a huge popular gathering. Thousands of spectators were present at the prize awarding ceremony, along with some 2,500 canoe racers, the big heros of this 12th edition of Hawaiki Nui Va’a.
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