The Aitutaki Liftoff (7 – 10 November) functional fitness sports event drew a record number of almost 100 local and international athletes.

Following suit with the past three years, the Aitutaki Liftoff included a mix of physical challenges from truck pulling, running and swimming to cycling and oe vaka paddling.

“I aim to keep it interesting for our athletes with each passing year,” said event Director Dani Adendorff.

“If you look around, this beautiful island offers so many platforms to create exciting physical challenges, from the fields and hills, to our stunning lagoon.”

This year’s fourth consecutive event had athletes from Canada, Hawaii, Aotearoa New Zealand and Rarotonga signing up for the adult categories of opens and beginners.

Six youth teams from Araura College aged between 12 – 17 years also took part.

A new category was introduced, the ‘Local Village’ category, which according to Adendorff, “was a great way to get our locals involved.

“This event has always been about inclusion, and in Aitutaki, village sports are a big part of community life here,” she said.

“I was excited to include that sense of village rivalry in this year’s event, and give our locals a chance to participate in something new and different, as a team, and as a village.”

Adendorff said with each passing year this “unique event”, the only one of its kind in the Cook Islands that is based around functional fitness, has continued to gain traction and put Aitutaki on the map as a fitness destination.

“The liftoff is about offering a broad scope of physical challenges, so there is truly something for everyone,” she said.

“The workouts are programmed to test a variety of skills, from speed and agility, to endurance and most of all - team work.

“We do not have access to many resources or equipment, but through the support of our friends at ‘Tumuora CrossFit’ and ‘Aitutaki Oe Vaka’, we managed to pull together enough gear to make this event a success.”

The event featured a multitude of fitness activities starting with the ‘Give Back Day’ on Tuesday 5 November hosted by Adendorff, and supported by Cook Islands Tourism at Araura College.

“This day was significant as it goes hand in hand with the overarching focus of the Liftoff, which aims to inspire, educate and motivate the local youth in Aitutaki,” Adendorff said.

The Give Back Day included a number of international athletes from Canada, Aotearoa and Hawaii, who shared their stories of health and wellness with the students, supporting the value of nutrition and exercise in everyday life.

Students, teachers and international athletes then engaged in fun fitness events pulling trucks, cheered on from the sidelines.

The launch of this event took place on Thursday 7 November at the Aitutaki Fishing Club where the individual weightlifting competition was also held.

Seventeen lifters participated in weightlifting including Adendorffs’s ambitious six year old daughter Maina Smith, as well as Katiana Meti (12) and Anacleto Leone (11) who are members of the FuncFit Araura youth development team.

Other lifters included Jerome Tura, the Cook Islands top male lifter as well as athletes from Aotearoa, Rarotonga and Aitutaki.

Tura took out the top spot for the men whilst Lavinia Tama from Rarotonga proved to be the strongest female lifter of the night.

On Friday, Te Aito drummers kicked off the team challenge island style with their powerful drumming and pe’e for the 24 teams who featured in the exciting truck pull event and a team running circuit at the Ureia field.

Aitutaki’s community turned out in big numbers to cheer on their family and friends.

Day two of the team challenge saw the event move to the O’otu peninsula, where teams engaged in two land based workouts followed by an exciting mix of water based events, including the much anticipated oe vaka sprints, and a swim, cycle, relay event.

Adendorff said after three days of competition, the teams and volunteers celebrated in style at Resort Tava’e who hosted a fabulous buffet and island night performance by the Te Aito dance group.

Sunday was earmarked for some much needed rest and relaxation as athletes set out on the 21m Vaka Titi-Ai-Tonga for a lagoon cruise and lunch on One Foot Island.

The top teams of the 2024 Aitutaki Liftoff were: Opens – 1 Kukis and Cream (490 points), Rarotonga; 2 Diddy Party (430), Aitutaki and Rarotonga; 3 Vaikoa Bandits (370), Aotearoa based Aitutakian’s.

Beginners - 1Paradise Special (470), Rarotonga and Aitutaki - sponsored by Paradise Islands; 2 Sugar Vibes (460), Aitutaki and Aotearoa based Aitutakian’s; 3 2Legit2Quit (390), Aitutaki team.

Aitutaki Villages – 1 Amuri (500), 2 Arenikau (430) and 3 Vaipae (420). Youth - 1Team Rinos (460) sponsored by Rinos, 2 Baked Bliss (430) sponsored by Tamara Maao, 3 MHACK (420) sponsored by Cecilia Misitea from Australia.

The Aitutaki Liftoff is a non-profit event with a very limited budget that relies heavily on generous sponsorship from business and individuals who help to fund the local youth teams, who participate free of charge.

Adendorff said the registration fees for adults assist to cover a fraction of their operational costs, whilst the rest of the expenses are covered by their major sponsor Cook Islands Tourism. The rest of the expenses are covered from her own pocket.

“This event would not be possible without endless favours from friends,” she said.

“The local community rallies together to help make this event possible for our island and without the generosity of our people, this event would cease to exist.

“It’s a mammoth task to run an event of this size without a committee or team, so I am forever grateful to those who stepped up to lend their time and energy to pull it off this year.”

The Aitutaki Liftoff was established to make a difference in the  community, and more importantly amongst the youth.

“It’s no secret that the Cook Islands is facing a crisis associated with NCDs (non-communicable-diseases).

“In a single generation we have gone from fighting fit farmers and outdoorsmen to having the highest rate of obesity, diabetes and hypertension in the world.

“As a mum, these statistics hit home and I feel it’s my duty to do my part, no matter how small, to start getting our community active and showing them the importance of a healthy lifestyle,” she said.

Adendorff would like to acknowledge: Drollet and Matamanea Joseph – youth team coordinators, the emcee, Mike Steele, Brendan Smith, Rowena Newbigging - head judge, Joshua Orika, Martin Stetka, volunteer judges from the Tumuora gym, John Beasley and Alisha Street for capturing the action. She is grateful to all the sponsors, and incredible crucial sponsors Cook Islands Tourism and Air Rarotonga.