
- University of Auckland aims to host the All Blacks at its new Hiwa sport and recreation centre.
- The $320 million facility offers Olympic-standard equipment, indoor and outdoor spaces, and an aquatic centre.
- The complex supports high-performance athletes and students, partnering with High Performance Sport NZ for research.
University of Auckland wants to host the All Blacks at its new state-of-the-art sport and recreation centre.
Hiwa, the eight-storey facility based in central Auckland, is poised to become the destination for top international sports teams seeking world-class training.
Offering Olympic-standard gym equipment, cutting-edge technology, indoor and outdoor training spaces, running tracks, an aquatic centre and recovery areas 鈥 it ticks almost every box across social and high-performance sports.
University of Auckland鈥檚 associate director of campus life for sport and rec, Sean Smith, told the Herald it has had 鈥渁 couple of requests from the Aussie teams and I would love the All Blacks to reach out to us 鈥 we鈥檇 prefer to host them if we could鈥.
鈥淭he Hiwa facility and broader campus are an ideal high-performance base for teams when in Auckland, with strength and conditioning studios, aquatics, sports halls, meeting rooms, physiotherapy, catering, sport and exercise science, engineering and medical and health science faculty support and even accommodation available 鈥 out of semester 鈥 right in the heart of central Auckland.鈥
Smith said the Waratahs Women鈥檚 Rugby team has inquired about booking Hiwa when in Auckland 鈥 likely for a Super Rugby Aupiki cross-over match with the Australian competition.
The design of the University of Auckland's Hiwa was inspired by the growing demands of its students. Photo / Supplied
The centre鈥檚 name, Hiwa, means 鈥渧igorous, active, robust and sound鈥, reflecting the university鈥檚 aspirations for growth and wellbeing. It was gifted by Ng膩ti Wh膩tua 艑r膩kei.
The $320 million complex took more than a decade to become reality. The 26,000sq m facility covers a space equivalent to roughly 3.7 rugby pitches or 100 standard tennis courts. Its design was inspired by the growing demands of its university students.
鈥淲e had an original rec centre on the site that was built in the late 70s,鈥 Smith said. 鈥淲hen it was built there were about 10,000 students and we鈥檝e swelled to over 40,000.
鈥淪o there was a huge demand to offer more space, more activity, more diversity of what was available.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really proud with what we鈥檝e achieved and the students are loving it. It鈥檚 on point with what our students today are after.鈥
Smith travelled to universities across the globe drawing inspiration from design and best practices.
Hiwa's aquatic centre caters to students and high-performance athletes. Photo / Supplied
The building鈥檚 exterior was developed by Warren and Mahoney Architects, while the interior was designed by MJMA out of Toronto, Canada.
鈥淭here are a few bits [MJMA have done] that have been very fortunate for us in that space... A lot of innovative thinking, a lot of non-New Zealand ways of doing things.
鈥淭he Canadians are more advanced in a lot of their accessibility, and the building is extremely barrier-free. All of our students can come and get involved in this space, and that鈥檚 been a huge learning for us.
鈥淭here was a lot of very robust debate, just challenging each other on this thinking coming from slightly different backgrounds. Having a slightly broader perspective has been really, really, really beneficial.鈥
Smith said the biggest challenge was executing his vision on a constrained city site on Princes and Symonds Sts 鈥 but he knew it would be game-changing if they could pull it off.
鈥淲e could have picked up a lot of the components of this and built them on the fringes or way off campus [but] we had a driver to make sure we had wellbeing and recreation smack in the middle of campus, so this sector 300 is the absolute heart.
鈥淭he hardest bit was fitting everything in and while it was a tough challenge, what it鈥檚 done is it鈥檚 created this unique facility.
鈥淚t鈥檚 meant we鈥檝e stacked up over eight floors, and we鈥檝e packed as much into this space available as possible.鈥
A multi-purpose rooftop turf is one of the features of Hiwa. Photo / Supplied
The complex has a combined indoor and outdoor 500m running track with a view of the T膩maki-Makaurau skyline. There are also diving springboards, a multi-purpose rooftop turf, a rock climbing wall, dance studios with ballet bars, fitness classes, basketball and futsal courts, a spa and sauna, three squash courts, table tennis, boxing and spin class studios and an Olympic weightlifting area.
One of its most innovative features is its indoor arena, which has a seating capacity for up to 1500 spectators. The arena boasts a glass floor equipped with LED lights that can illuminate and transform to accommodate various sport-specific courts, including netball, basketball, and badminton.
The building was funded primarily through the student services levy, which covers non-academic services on campus. Additionally, students continue to pay membership fees, and the building generates revenue by hosting various events, teams and hopefully soon, international tournaments.
A key focus of the university will involve maintaining a strong partnership with High Performance Sport NZ (HPSNZ) and all national sporting organisations.
鈥淭his isn鈥檛 just for improving pathways and support for our 250 student high-performance athletes, but also to support all of New Zealand鈥檚 high-performance athletes and teams.
鈥淲e have many of New Zealand鈥檚 leading researchers and specialists on campus who can offer support to high-performance sports.
鈥淥ur team of exercise scientists and engineers is partnering in research and innovation with High-Performance Sport NZ to optimise athlete performance in exercise physiology and sports technology. The collaboration has already supported significant successes in cycling at the Paris Olympic Games and continues to drive the innovation pipeline for the upcoming LA Games.鈥
The new complex is a modern version of the AUT Millennium where many of New Zealand鈥檚 top Olympians such as Zoe Hobbs, Lewis Clareburt and David Liti train.
鈥淥ur goal isn鈥檛 to look to compete with any support systems already in place at the current HPSNZ bases, such as at Millennium,鈥 Smith said.
鈥淲e, instead, are further developing an additional high-performance innovation hub at New Zealand鈥檚 leading university, at our city-centre campus, which will support broader and specialised services, expanding and strengthening those currently offered.鈥
Beyond the high-performance capabilities, Smith hopes this space can help keep students active, preventing young adults from dropping out of sport after high school.
For current students, the membership is $4 a week 鈥 $200 per year. It鈥檚 $20 per week for staff and $26 for alumni. For everyone else, it鈥檚 $29 a week, which is about the same as a Les Mills membership.
鈥淪tudents that are involved in sport and recreation, it鈥檚 been proven time and time again through research, become more employable, you鈥檙e unemployed for a shorter time, you get a higher salary. We鈥檙e focusing on getting the price down, so more students get involved.
鈥淲ith this facility, the goal is to have about 20,000 of the university community supported, and they won鈥檛 all be members of the facility, they may just be watching a game or enjoying the spaces and, that鈥檚 about 50% of our population, and so that鈥檚 the driver for that price point.鈥
is a multimedia journalist in the 九一星空无限 sports team. She鈥檚 a football commentator and co-host of the Football Fever podcast, and was part of the Te Rito cadetship scheme before becoming a fulltime journalist.
Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you
Get the iHeart App
Get more of the radio, music and podcasts you love with the FREE iHeartRadio app. Scan the QR code to download now.
Download from the app stores
Stream unlimited music, thousands of radio stations and podcasts all in one app. iHeartRadio is easy to use and all FREE