Waka hurdling
{{Short description|Maori sporting competition}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=December 2023}}
{{Infobox sport
| name =
| image = Maori waka hurdle race on the Waikato River at the Ngaruawahia Regatta. ATLIB 287516.png
| imagesize =
| alt =
| caption = Waka hurdle race on the Waikato River, 1910
| nickname = Waka peke
| first =
| firstlabel =
| contact = No
| team = Two per waka
| mgender =
| type = Boat sport
| equipment =
| venue = River or lake
| region = New Zealand
}}
Waka hurdling, also sometimes called waka peke (jumping waka), is a Māori sporting competition of jumping unornamented waka tīwai (river canoes) over wooden beams set in the water.{{Cite web|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/13612|title=Hurdle race|first=New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu|last=Taonga|website=teara.govt.nz}} There have been attempts to revive the sport and keep the tradition going.{{Cite web|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/77972962/modern-paddlers-try-to-master-traditional-sport|title=Modern paddlers try to master traditional sport|website=Stuff}} The Auckland Museum has a photograph of the sport and spectators.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collection/object/am_library-photography-95588|title=[Waka hurdle race - Ngaruawahia Regatta] - Collections Online - Auckland War Memorial Museum}} The hurdles are made of long tree branches. Albert Percy Godber photographed the sport in 1910.{{Cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22661780|title=Maori waka hurdle race on the Waikato River at the Ngaruawahia Regatta.|first=Not|last=specified|date=January 1, 1910|website=Maori waka hurdle race on the Waikato... | Items | National Library of New Zealand}} The competition is part of the festivities of traditional Māori regattas.{{Cite journal |title=The Ngāruawāhia Tūrangawaewae regatta: Today's reflections on the past |last=Rewi |first=Tangiwai |year=2015 |journal=The Journal of the Polynesian Society |volume=124 |issue=1 |pages=47–81|doi = 10.15286/jps.124.1.47-81|jstor = 44733636|doi-access=free }}