Hannah Gapes | Sport

My name is Hannah Gapes, I am 16 years old and currently a Year 12 student at John Paul College, Rotorua. I live in a family of six, with three brothers.

I love sports. I feel privileged to have been involved in a wide variety, including rock climbing, tennis, table-tennis, hockey, mountain biking, badminton and running, most competing at Regional and National level.

I am most passionate about running in particular cross country, road, track and trail. I train hard for my sport, often on my own due to Rotorua having few running athletes my age. I am extremely fortunate to live close to forests and lakes where I do most of my training. This year, training has been going well – I just attained my best result, winning the Womens U18 age group at the recent Athletics New Zealand Cross Country Challenge. Ultimately my goal is to represent New Zealand in this sport.

Outside of running, I am studying Level 2 NCEA. I enjoy community activities and volunteering. I am a part of the New Zealand’s Student Volunteer Army and completing my Duke of Edinburgh International Gold Award. I am the Student Representative for the Bay of Plenty Student Sports Council, which is set up to encourage students to become more physically active. I am also the Student Ambassador for the Coromandel Great Kauri Run, which promotes the regeneration of the Kauri in NZ.

I am grateful for the support from my family. My parents give me the opportunity to train and travel around NZ for my sport, which all comes at a cost of time and money.
I am enthusiastic, determined and committed to my sport. I desire to be excellent in all that I do, and also understand the importance of giving back to our community.