New Zealand on Sunday regained the world record for the largest haka after more than 6,000 people performed the famous Maori war dance, dethroning France.
The record was broken in deafening fashion at Auckland’s Eden Park rugby stadium, where thousands of men, women and children gathered on the field to complete a traditional challenge involving vigorous movement, stomping and rhythmic shouting.
The judge confirmed that 6,531 participants performed the ‘Ka Mate’ haka, a song popularized by the All Blacks rugby team, which is played immediately before Test matches.
France had held the world record since September 2014 when 4,028 people clapped their hands and sang the song following a rugby match in Brive-la-Gaillarde, south-west France.
Auckland organizers had hoped for up to 10,000 participants but were nevertheless delighted that the record was returned by New Zealand, where the haka is considered a national treasure.
“We want to bring the mana (pride) of the haka back home,” Michael Mizrahi, director of the Auckland try, told AFP. “It’s not just that we want to get it out of the French, it’s like a national treasure that someone has taken from us. It’s very important to us as New Zealanders.”
He added: “Some things should be traditionally sacred.
DJ MILLS/AFP via Getty Images
Previous attempts involving crowds of more than 5,000 people in New Zealand failed because Guinness World Records officials did not approve it, Mizrahi said.
In this case, the judge was flown to Auckland.
The Ka Mate haka was composed around 1820 by the warrior chief Te Rauparaha to celebrate his escape from a war party in pursuit of a rival tribe.
Under New Zealand law, the Maori tribe, Ngati Toa, based in Porirua outside Wellington – are seen as the traditional custodians of the Ka Mate haka.
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