IT was the 20th year of the annual AIMS Games and once again it excelled on many levels.

The sporting event is one of the biggest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere and featured 13,000 children competing in 27 sports.

They came from schools across New Zealand, as well as Australia and Fiji.

The traditional sports of tennis, soccer, netball, rugby, basketball, hockey are all mainstays, while events such as mountain biking, water polo, orienteering, 3x3 basketball and a range of others have been added over the years.

For many of the children, AIMS is the highlight of their sporting career and the biggest event they attend. For a select few, it will be a stepping stone to bigger and brighter things.

This year, a large contingent from the Eastern Bay attended the games and despite varying results, all had a blast.

The best results for the Eastern Bay were Beau Broadhurst, who won the first surfing title at the AIMS Games, a proud piece of history that will never be broken.

Another highlight was the success of the golfers for a second year. Starlite Wickliffe from Tāneatua School won the nine-hole grade, and Tāneatua took out the team division. Ōpōtiki Primary School was third.

Whakatāne Intermediate’s Harper Thompson could well have been a medallist in the cross-country mountain bike had he not been stuck behind a lapped competitor in a sprint for the finish. The school had several mountain biking competitors who performed strongly, as did Otakiri School.

The Whakatāne Intermediate girl’s hockey team played some fantastic games with just one loss from their nine games, to Otūmoetai Intermediate who finished fourth overall.

It was a top effort against 24 other schools.

In the boy’s hockey, the Whakatāne Intermediate team finished 11th out of 16 teams, winning six of their eight games.

Tāneatua School managed a fourth place in their 3x3 mixed basketball grade, winning five of their nine matches. In the same competition, Matatā finished 10th, Otamarakau were 12th, Tāneatua B, 20th, and Murupara Area School, 24th.

In the futsal competition played at Bay Park, Ōpōtiki Primary were the best of the Eastern Bay teams, winning four of their 10 matches to finish 26th overall, with crosstown rivals Woodlands finishing 28th.

Awakeri also had a team in the futsal, but they finished outside the top 40.

The Whakatāne Intermediate football teams had mixed success.

Some strong performances by the boys saw them finish with six wins and three losses, to place 35th, and third in the bowl finals. Their highlight would have been a win over St Peter’s College, Cambridge.

Whakatāne Intermediate’s girls' team showed they can foot it with the best at times, scoring some impressive goals to finish with five wins, two draws and three losses from their 10-match campaign.

Victories against St Cuthbert’s College, Bethlehem College and Sacred Heart Girls’ School (New Plymouth) were highlights.

Despite finishing in the bottom two spots, Otakiri School and Tarawera High School boys’ football teams had a blast throughout the week.

A 6-1 loss to Bridge Pa School is all that stood in the way of the Whakatāne Intermediate Rip Rugby team and a top four finish. They shared fifth with Mount Maunganui Intermediate following a 2-all draw.

Tarawera High School showed their skills in the same sport finishing 15th overall thanks to six wins, five losses and a draw.

Edgecumbe Primary School managed a couple of good wins to finish 48th out of 59 teams.

In a huge 84-team, five-a-side boys’ basketball grade, Whakatāne Intermediate finished 81st out of 84 teams.

Rugby Sevens saw Whakatāne Intermediate finish 34th out of 40 teams in action. Some tough competition proved difficult for the side, while they held their own and played some good rugby.

Netball was a huge success, with Whakatāne Intermediate finishing 10th out of more than 136 teams.

In their 11 games, they had eight wins, two losses and a draw to cap off a fantastic few days on court. Ōpōtiki Primary School was the next best Eastern Bay side in 40th place and Edgecumbe Primary finished 123rd.

Badminton, cross country, canoe slalom, canoe racing, gymnastics, indoor bowls, squash, golf, and others all featured Eastern Bay athletes, with many having success and an incredibly fun week.

It’s a week that people remember forever and often where lifelong friends or memories are created.

You can expect Eastern Bay schools to be back in 2025 and for many of their teams and athletes to provide some stiff challenges as they have this year.