Hororata Highland Games


The Hororata Highland Games is an annual event held in Hororata, New Zealand. The Games began in 2011, following the 2010 Canterbury earthquake. The Hororata community had a desire to make a positive change following the damage of the Canterbury earthquakes. The annual event has increased in popularity with 10,000 people coming to the 2016 edition. It has since become New Zealand's biggest Scottish festival.
In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic closed New Zealand's borders. This left overseas tourists unable to attend the Games. Despite this, 8,500 people showed up to its tenth event. However, the 2021 event was cancelled. In 2022, the event was held again, with 10,000 people attending the eleventh games and six hundred competitors taking part in traditional Scottish Sports.

Chieftain

There is a Chieftain for each games who presides over the opening ceremony. These have included:

Economy

A study conducted by the University of Canterbury looked at the economic benefits of the Hororata Highland Games. This found that they provided $370,000 to the Selwyn District economy in 2019.

Events

The Games have over 300 competitors turn up each year, with about 570 competitors competing in 2020. Competitions include Highland Dancing, Piping and Drumming, Tug O’ War and Scottish heavy athletics. The heavy athletics include the hammer throw, the sheaf toss, the Hororata stones and tossing the caber. The Kilted mile is a race over a mile which includes eating a Hororata Pie, Drinking a traditional Scottish drink and negotiating a series of obstacles. There are also stalls, food vendors and a fairground each year.