Te reo Māori is going all the way to Paris as the first-ever bilingual sporting resource for an Olympic Games is launched today. 

‘Te Reo Māori ki Parī 2024’ is the first Olympic Games glossary in Māori and English. It features more than 1,000 terms and phrases, across 30 Olympic Games sporting codes.

It was created in a three-way collaboration between Te Whare o Pou Tangata (the New Zealand Olympic Committee), New Zealand's exclusive Olympic Games broadcaster Rangiata (Sky), and Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (the Māori Language Commission). 

“There is great demand for te reo support and resources across the motu. The pool of sports-related words is even more limited. Paris 2024 presents a significant opportunity for all three organisations to take te reo Māori to the world and to gift it to all New Zealanders, now and in future,” says NZOC Pouwhiringa (Māori Culture Lead) - Oriini Kaipara. 

“The NZOC is passionate about Māori culture, it is integral to all our mahi, and it is key to our performance success at Olympic Games. 

“This isn’t just about including more Māori during the Games, this is how NZOC does things now. We are thrilled to support te reo Māori and those championing it like some of our extraordinary athletes representing us in Paris.”

The resource includes breaking, the newest event to the Olympic Games, plus new Māori words for athletics, triathlon, sailing and more. These terms are designed for beginner to advanced levels of te reo speakers and learners, from fans to support teams and athletes to broadcasters.

For Rangiata Sky, the resource started as a way to boost levels of Māori language in broadcasting. The broadcaster is taking a deliberate stance on increased use of te reo as part of its long-term commitment to Aotearoa audiences. 

“Recently we’ve been using more Māori in our live sports broadcasts, including for Māori All Blacks matches and the 2023 Rugby World Cup. It’s been well received by audiences as well as our own Sky crew”, says Sophie Moloney, Chief Executive of Rangiata, Sky.  

“Paris 2024 is another great opportunity to elevate the use of te reo in our Games commentary. We were pleased to work with Te Whare o Pou Tangata and Te Taura Whiri to make sure broadcasters have a range of kupu and kīwaha to celebrate and encourage our athletes and teams.”

Showcasing te reo Māori on such a global platform reinforces the value New Zealanders have for te reo Māori and models the language as a normal means of communication says Ngahiwi Apanui-Barr, Chief Executive of Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori.     

“As New Zealanders, when we’re away from home, te reo Māori is a touchstone to connect us straight back. So in a moment of pride, like walking into that arena to represent your country, it’s powerful that te reo Māori will be there too, backing our best.” 

“Welcoming te reo into places you wouldn’t expect to find it, like the Olympics, is an important part of normalising te reo Māori. It shows that te reo Māori is a normal, living and forever language”.  

He rauemi reo hou kua rewa mō Ngā Taumāhekeheke: Ūmerehia a tātou Toa Taumāhekeheke i te reo Māori 

I tēnei rangi e kawea ana te reo Māori kia tae rawa ki Parī, hei tuatahitanga ka rewa he rauemi hākina reorua mō ngā hākina Taumāhekeheke.

‘Te Reo Māori ki Parī 2024’ te papakupu Taumāhekehe tuatahi reorua i roto i te reo Māori me te reo Pākehā. Kei roto ka kitea neke atu i te kotahi mano ngā kupu me ngā rerenga kīanga mō ngā 30 hākina Taumāhekeheke.

I waihanga tahitia i runga i te hono takitoru a Te Whare o Pou Tangata, te kaipāpāho motuhake o Aotearoa mō ngā Taumāhekeheke a Rangiata, me Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori.

“He tino nui te nonoi mō te tautoko me ngā rauemi i te reo puta noa i te motu. Ko te puna o ngā kupu whaipānga ki ngā hākina ka noho tino taparere.

He wā whakahirahira tēnei i Parī 2024 mō ngā rōpū takitoru ki te kawe i te reo Māori ki te ao, hei takoha ki a ngāi Aotearoa mō inamata tae atu ki anamata,” e ai ki te Pouwhiringa o Te Whare o Pou Tangata a Oriini Kaipara.

“He tino ngākau whiwhita Te Whare o Pou Tangata mō te ahurea Māori, ka titikaha ki ā mātou mahi katoa, koia kei te whakahau i te tutukinga angitu i ngā hākina Taumāhekeheke.

“Ehara noa tēnei mō te whakauru i te reo ki tēnei Taumāhekeheke, ko te mahi tēnei a Te Whare o Pou Tangata ā mohoa noa nei. E manawa reka ana mātou ki te tautoko i ngā toa mō te reo Māori tae atu ki ngā kaipara whakahirahira e tū ana mō tātou i Parī.”

Kua uru ki tēnei rauemi te kani whatiwhati koinei te hākina hou rawa i te Taumāhekeheke, tāpiri atu ko ngā kupu Māori hou mō ngā kaiaka, hākinatoru, tere waka me te maha noa atu. I hoahoatia enei kupu mō te hunga hou ki te reo tae atu ki te hunga matatau me ngā ākonga, ara, ko ngā kaiwhaiwhai, ngā ohut autoko, ngā kaipara me ngā kaipāpāho hoki.

Mō Rangiata ake i tīmata te rauemi hei huarahi ki te whakapiki i te reo Māori ki te ao pāpāho. E mātua tū kaha ana te kaipāpāho kia piki ake te reo i runga i tōna oati wāroa ki a ngāi Aotearoa.

“I ngā rā tata nei he nui ake tā mātou whakamahi i te reo Māori i ā mātou pāpāho hākina mataora, tae atu ki ngā hākina Ōpango Māori me Te Ipu Whutupōro o Te Ao 2023. He ngākau reka ngā kaimātakitaki tae atu ki ā mātou kaimahi o Rangiata”, e ai ki te Tumu Whakarae o Rangiata a Sophie Moloney.

“He āheinga nui rawa a Parī 2024 ki te whakatairanga i te kawe i te reo i roto i ngā kōrero hākinakina. Tino koa mātou ki te mahi tahi ki a Te Whare o Pou Tangata rāua ko Te Taura Whiri kia whai wāhi ngā kaipāpāho ki ngā kupu me ngā kīwaha whānui hei whakanui me te whakahau i ā tātou kaipara me ngā ohu.”

“Ko te whakamōrunga i te reo Māori i runga i te atamira o te Ao, he whakapakari i te uara e mau ana ki a ngāi Aotearoa mō te reo Māori me te whakatauira i te reo hei kauwaka māori noa ki te whakapā tētahi ki tētahi”, e ai ki te Tumu Whakarae o Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori a Ngahiwi Apanui-Barr.

“Mō tātou a ngāi Aotearoa, i te wā kāore tātou i te kāinga ko te reo Māori te huarahi ki te hono tōtika ki te kāinga. Waihoki he wā whakahī, pērā ki te hīkoi tuatahi ki runga i te papa tākaro hei whakakanohi i tō whenua, he mana ihiihi kei reira anō ko te reo Māori e tautoko ana i ā tātou kaipara toa”

​​“Ko te whakatau i te reo i ngā wāhi kāore e rangona ana pēnei i te Taumāhekeheke, he wāhanga inati kia taunoa te reo Māori. He whakaatu tēnei he reo māori te reo, kei te ora te reo, ka pūmau mō ake tonu atu”.