Mum disputes placing

In front of a huge crowd at the BCI Stadium for the Prince of Wales primary school athletics day on Wednesday, eight-year-old Avatea speedster Romatt Wichman-Rairoa blitzed his 75m heats and grand finals race but was declared second by the official on the finish line.

This sent his mother Mere Wichman-Rairoa into a frenzy of protest supported by a large group of witnesses on the start line.

Even the day’s emcee George George hooted and hollered on the loud speaker that the young fella from Avatea had won the race – by miles.

Wichman-Rairoa’s protest went unnoticed and her anger was fuelled by the fact that the exact same thing happened to her son last year.

Despite being declared second in that 75m grand finals race, the young Avatea runner still collected the junior boys overall athletics champion trophy along with another gold medal for winning the junior boys long jump event.

Vae Unuka, principal of host school Arorangi Primary School and president of the Primary Schools Sports Committee, says he received the complaint from Wichman-Rairoa but at this stage there is not much he can do to give Romatt the gold medal he earned by winning the race.

However, he says he will be bringing up the case when the school sports committee sits next Wednesday with his priority to find out why the young man was declared second when it was clear he had won.

Unuka adds that he will also make it a priority to acknowledge the brilliant effort of the young Avatea student.

Unfortunately, says Unuka, the process for disputes during the Prince of Wales athletics day is to lay a complaint immediately at the field where it would be sorted out straight away, as was the case on Wednesday.

Still, Unuka says that he will do his best to make sure that young Romatt is rewarded and acknowledged for his first place race – the only thing his mother wants.