Nā Shakayla Andrews-Alapaki tēnei atikara.
Kāi Tahu wrestler Rikki Swete has come away from the New Zealand National Wrestling Championships with multiple titles and the inaugural Darcy Dunlop Trophy.
Swete won the trophy for Best Performance in the over-35 division, defended his national 88kg freestyle title and claimed the 88kg Greco-Roman championship.
The results followed what Swete described as one of the toughest preparations he has had for the nationals.
“I put in a tonne of work in the lead-up, so I've been really working on a lot of technique, a lot of time in the gym with the team, but also on my cardio and fitness and strength and conditioning.
“In all honesty, probably the most brutal lead-up I've had in the Nationals in the last five years.”
FROM YOUNG WRESTLER TO NATIONAL CHAMPION | HE KAIMAMAU PAKU KUA HURI HEI TOA Ā-MOTU
Swete’s connection to wrestling stretches back to childhood. He began competing at five and continued until he was 19, winning several national titles and earning selection for the New Zealand development team.
His early career also took him to the United States for five weeks before two knee surgeries forced him away from the sport.
His latest national campaign brought another challenge, with Swete and his whānau moving from Geraldine to Ōtautahi shortly before he flew to Tāmaki Makaurau for the competition.
After arriving, he discovered he was two kilograms over his competition weight, so resorted to extreme measures to shed the weight.
“I was in the middle of CityFitness with a hoodie on, a ski jacket on, a beanie on, long pants on, the treadmill running next to people in their shorts and singlets, thinking, ‘Who is this guy?’”
A WORKER BY DAY, A WRESTLER BY NIGHT | HE KAIMAHI I TE AO, HE KAIMAMAU I TE PŌ
Alongside wrestling, Swete works full-time as Business Operations Manager at Ngāi Tahu Seafood, a subsidiary of Ngāi Tahu Holdings Corporation.
While his role involves long hours and frequent travel, Swete said training remains a priority.
“When we're away travelling for work, we work damn hard, but we also prioritise a gym session every single time we're away….”
“If we can't get to the gym, we'll find a mountain to run up.”
SWETE SET FOR BIGGEST TEST YET | HE WERO E KAINAMU MAI NEI MĀ SWETE
Last year marked another major milestone for Swete, when he captained the New Zealand national team at the Oceania Championships in American Samoa.
He returned home with three medals across three categories, adding to two Oceania medals won earlier in his wrestling career.
But leading the national side proved to be one of the standout moments of the campaign.
“To captain the team was something really special.”
Swete is now preparing for what he describes as the biggest competition of his life, after being selected to represent New Zealand at the Commonwealth Championships in South Africa
He will compete in both Greco-Roman and freestyle in his weight class, taking on wrestlers from across the Commonwealth.
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Kua hoki mai te kaimamau o Kāi Tahu, a Rikki Swete, i te Whakataetae Mamau ā-Motu o Aotearoa me ētahi taitara maha, tae atu ki te Tohu Darcy Dunlop tuatahi.
I whakawhiwhia a Swete i te tohu mō te Whakaaturanga Pai Rawa i te reanga pakeke neke atu i te 35 tau. Kua riro hoki e ia i tana taitara ā-motu Freestyle 88kg, ā, i toa anō ia i te taitara Greco-Roman 88kg.
E ai ki a Swete, i puta ērā hua whai muri i tētahi o ngā whakaritenga uaua rawa kua pāngia mai ki a ia i roto i ngā tau e rima kua pahure ake nei.
“I put in a tonne of work in the lead-up, so I've been really working on a lot of technique, a lot of time in the gym with the team, but also on my cardio and fitness and strength and conditioning.
“In all honesty, probably the most brutal lead-up I've had in the Nationals in the last five years.”
HE KAIMAMAU PAKU KUA HURI HEI TOA Ā-MOTU
Nō tōna tamarikitanga tonu te hononga o Swete ki te ao mamau. I tīmata ia ki te whakataetae i te rima o ōna tau, ā, haere tonu ana tae noa ki te 19 o ōna tau, me tana toa i ētahi taitara ā-motu me tana whakaurunga ki te tīma whanaketanga o Aotearoa.
I whai wāhi hoki ia ki te haere ki Amerika mō ngā wiki e rima, engari nā ngā pokanga turi e rua i whakatā ai ia i te mamau.
He wero anō i puta i tana haerenga ki ngā whakataetae ā-motu o tēnei tau. Kātahi anō a Swete me tōna whānau ka neke mai i Geraldine ki Ōtautahi, kātahi ia ka rere ki Tāmaki Makaurau mō te whakataetae.
I tana taenga atu, ka kitea e ia e rua kirokaramu tōna taumaha, ka mutu, i tahuri ia ki ngā mahi taumaha rawa atu ka heke ai tōna taumaha.
“I was in the middle of CityFitness with a hoodie on, a ski jacket on, a beanie on, long pants on, the treadmill running next to people in their shorts and singlets, thinking, ‘Who is this guy?’”
HE KAIMAHI I TE AO, HE KAIMAMAU I TE PŌ
I tua atu i te ao mamau, he Kaiwhakahaere Whakahaere Pakihi a Swete ki Ngāi Tahu Seafood.
He kamupene nō Ngāi Tahu Holdings Corporation a Ngāi Tahu Seafood, ā, ko te tūāpapa he whakangao mō ngā reanga e heke mai ana. Ka tautoko ngā hua o te pakihi i ngā kaupapa ahurea me ngā kaupapa ōhanga e whai hua ai ngā mema Ngāi Tahu kua rēhitatia, neke atu i te 80,000.
Ahakoa he maha, he roa hoki ngā haerenga e hāngai ana ki tana mahi, e ai ki a Swete, ka ū tonu ia ki te whakangungu ahakoa tōna karore haere ki hea.
“When we're away travelling for work, we work damn hard, but we also prioritise a gym session every single time we're away.
“If we can't get to the gym, we'll find a mountain to run up.”
HE WERO E KAINAMU MAI NEI MĀ SWETE
I tērā tau, i eke ai a Swete ki tētahi taumata tiketike i tana noho hei kāpene mō te tīma mamau o Aotearoa ki ngā Whakataetae Oceania ki Amerika Hāmoa.
I hoki mai me ngā mētara e toru i ngā momo whakataetae e toru, hei tāpiri atu ki ngā mētara Oceania e rua i toa i a ia i ngā tau o mua.
Heoi, ko te arahinai i te tīma ā-motu tētahi mea whakahirahira ki a Swete.
“To captain the team was something really special.”
Ināianei, e whakarite ana a Swete mō te whakataetae nui rawa atu o te ao mamau, whai muri i tana kōwhiringa hei kanohi mō Aotearoa ki ngā Whakataetae Commonwealth ki Āwherika ki te Tonga.
Kei roto ia i te wāhanga Greco-Roman me te freestyle, e tuki ana ki ngā kaimamau nō ngā whenua o te Commonwealth.