Tawera Nikau

A man who had it all: New Zealand's representative in the Rugby League, the Kiwis; a lucrative overseas contract in Rugby League with Wigan; a family consisting of a loving wife and two children. What more could anyone ask for? Yet this man would change it all to have just one small thing back again. In 1996 Tawera's wife committed suicide, leaving his world and that of his children shattered. Although he was able to pick up the pieces and continue to play out his contract, the shores of his home, Aotearoa, New Zealand, called strongly. Here he would be among the people he loved, so at the end of his contract he packed up his family and moved home to Huntly.

http://www.thecastlefordtigers.co.uk/ images/nikau.jpg

Maybe this is where life began, back among the people who cared the most about him and where he could start giving something back to New Zealand, in particular the youth of his community. Tawera started working with at-risk youth at his home marae. His aim was to instill pride back into their lives, pinpoint the thing that was important to them and identify exactly what they were good at. Who better to have as a teacher than someone who had risen from their community into the world sport arena as one of the best and had a passion for life we could all learn from?

In 1996 Tawera was approached by an old League buddy, Dean Lonnergan, to participate in an event that was very close to Tawera's heart. The event? Fight for Life, raising money for the fight against youth suicide. Tawera told the nation of his own personal anguish dealing with suicide and mental illness. This came as a surprise to many of us as it had been dealt with quietly, with no publicity at the time. The quiet dignity that this man has and the respect he showed his family gives us a model to learn from and opened the gates to many other highly prominent people to share these issues with all of us.

So, life went on and you would think he had suffered enough for one person. However, Tawera had another passion, his Harley Davidson and wide open spaces. This was to bring him to the second trial in his life. In 2002 Tawera had an accident on his bike which resulted in him losing his leg below the knee. A reason to give up on life? Not for Tawera! This inspirational man just saw it as another hurdle for him to jump in his life's path. Within a year he was back on his feet with that huge smile on his face, laughing at his own misfortune and pushing to even greater heights in his life.

2004 saw him aiming for the Paralympics, but just missing out, as six months to qualify and train, he didn't quite fit the criteria! Their loss, really, as he would have been a huge inspiration to all involved either on the team or watching these awesome athletes from the sidelines. So he sat back and relaxed for a while. Yeah, right! Tawera, instead, started training again for the Fight for Life - and what a show he and the others put on. If that is not enough, he has gone on to be a coach and mentor to many within his community and he built a highly successful career, hosting Sport 365 with many other successful Maori role models. What a role model for all New Zealanders, young and old!

Standing Tall (http://ecx.images-amazon.com /images/I/4167T7DGTML. _SL500_AA240_.jpg)

Why have I chosen this man as a hero? I think that is obvious! He could have easily shrunk away into obscurity but instead he has continued to be one of the most inspirational tall poppies we have in Aotearoa, New Zealand. He shows that no matter what we are faced with, we don't let anything or anyone cut us down. He is a man of integrity, pride, and compassion, and he has a wicked sense of humour to boot. The mana he holds within gave him the power to be one of the most successful and inspirational sportspeople of our time and gives him the motivation to continue a very successful career. The sky is the limit? Not in this man's shoes!

Life is worth living and although we face many hurdles on the track of life, they are just that. They are put there to hinder our progress, not to stop it! Hurdles make us stronger within to tackle the problems without and help us live life to the fullest.