20 Jun 2012

Maori cloak handed over to NZ Olympic team

11:20 am on 20 June 2012

The New Zealand Olympic Committee's feather cloak, Te Mahutonga, has been formally presented to the London 2012 Olympic Team in a ceremony at Te Puni Kokiri in Wellington.

Te Mahutonga is worn only by the flag bearer of New Zealand Olympic Teams and was worn most recently by snowboarder Juliane Bray at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games and rower Mahe Drysdale at the Beijing Games in 2008.

The cloak passes from Summer to Winter Olympic teams and is an important milestone in the countdown to the games.

The ceremony took place in the presence of Honourable Dr Pita Sharples, Minister of Maori Affairs, and Mike Stanley, President of the Olympic Committee.