Our third award category is Event Excellence.  The purpose of the Event Excellence Award is to identify, celebrate, promote and encourage best practice event planning and delivery in the sport and recreation sector.

We'd like to congratulate our finalists:

2017 World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships

The 2017 World Shearing Championships, hosted by the NZ Shearing Foundation at ILT Stadium Southland, lifted the bar for international shearing events.

Organisers delivered a true entertainment spectacle, in a world-class venue, attracting 400 competitors from 31 countries. A total of 12,607 spectator tickets were sold over the four days of competition. The event raised the profile of the sport, attracting significant national and international media coverage. 82 accredited media attended the event, producing 880 digital articles. Broadcast partner Maori Television live streamed the event and produced an hour-long television special.

The event resulted in a direct contribution of between $1.63 and $1.96 million to the Southland economy and between $2.11 and $2.84 million to the New Zealand economy (excluding industry multipliers).

Precise planning and rigorous financial management, combined with strong commercial and community support, delivered a sporting spectacle which earned the title of Best International Event at the 2017 New Zealand Event Awards.

The DHL New Zealand Lions Series 2017

An iconic rugby event, the DHL New Zealand Lions Series presented New Zealand Rugby with the opportunity to realise their vision of a six-week long festival of rugby.

A tender process encouraged local city authorities, venues and rugby organisations to come together and put forward a combined bid to host matches. Seeking to provide the best possible rugby experience, NZR signed agreements with both the venues and rugby organisations, and also city authorities to activate entertainment around the event. The NZ Government invested $3 million into leverage and cultural activities surrounding the Series, including waterfront fanzones in both Auckland and Wellington.

The direct and indirect GDP impact of the event for New Zealand was measured at $240 million. The event attracted more than 33,000 international visitors and over 342,000 tickets were sold for the 10 matches around the country.

An operationally excellent event, the DHL New Zealand Lions Series was also successful in bringing together communities in a positive and unifying experience of rugby, showcasing New Zealand to the world, contributing to the country's economy, and ensuring a profitable Series.

World Masters Games 2017

The 9th World Masters Games (WMG2017), held in the regions of Auckland and the Waikato, was a 10-day event featuring 28,578 participants who competed across 28 sports and 48 venues.

WMG2017 exceeded all KPIs set, demonstrating a sound return on investment for Auckland and New Zealand. WMG2017 generated a surplus of $831,000 which is being delivered back into amateur sport, a fantastic legacy of the event. Just as importantly, the Games resonated with participants and the public, delivering an excellent customer experience for athletes and captivating Aucklanders who became avid supporters, and welcoming hosts, during the 10 days of the event.

96% of sport partners believed the hosting of the Games has, or will, result in a legacy benefit for their sport.

The event delivered a GDP result of $34.2 million for Auckland and $63 million for New Zealand.

WMG2017 delivered an exceptional and memorable Games experience for athletes, New Zealanders and stakeholders, while strengthening the global masters movement.