The Indian Weekender, 26 February 2021

8 NEW ZEALAND
Friday, February 26, 2021 The Indian Weekender
Barfoot and Thompson NZ
Badminton League kicks off
IWK BUREAU
The thrilling Barfoot & Thompson New
Zealand Badminton League has gone
into action for the first time in 2021
from Tuesday, February 23 at Badminton
Waitakere.
The 2021 season is coming back with bigger
and better action in the court, new players,
teams and venues that the fans had been waiting
for a long time.
With a rapid-fire match format, the
excitement of ‘golden games’ and an increased
$20,000 prize pool up for grabs, the Barfoot &
Thompson NZBL will have sports fans on the
edge of their seats.
In Round 1 on Tuesday, February 23, team
Tiger brokers Tigers won against Starship
Rockets- in which Tigers won by Golden Game.
“The NZBL was an absolute highlight in
2020 and showed the huge potential badminton
has as a professional sport that delivers exciting
entertainment for fans in New Zealand and
around the world”, says Badminton New
Zealand Chief Executive Joe Hitchcock.
“Tens of thousands of Kiwis loved watching
the first season of the NZBL, and we know fans
are eager to see the best badminton players in
New Zealand back on the court.”
Barfoot & Thompson has been a long-time
supporter of the New Zealand Badminton Open
and is also on board for the upcoming BWF
World Junior Championships in 2024 and BWF
World Senior Championships in 2025.
Managing Director of Barfoot & Thompson,
Peter Thompson, described it as a natural
decision to add the NZBL to their sponsorship
of major badminton events in New Zealand.
“We are very excited about the opportunities
this partnership creates for us, for the greater
Northland and Auckland region, and one of
New Zealand’s fastest-growing sports.
“We have been a proud sponsor of Badminton
New Zealand for more than five years and
have witnessed the joy that the sport brings to
Community can join Sadhguru’s
Mahashivratri party live from NZ
IWK BUREAU
Isha Foundation will celebrate its 27th
Mahashivratri event from India on Friday,
March 12, that can be viewed and joined by
the community in New Zealand, from 1:30 a.m.
to 1:30 p.m. New Zealand Time. The event will
be live-streamed at isha.sadhguru.org/msr and
across major TV channels in India.
Mahashivratri is an exuberant night-long
festival at the Isha Yoga Center, with renowned
artists’ explosive meditations and spectacular
musical performances, attracting a few million
people globally.
The event will be streamed via LIVE satellite
feeds in English and 11 Indian languages.
Sadhguru will be present throughout the night,
conducting guided meditations, including a
powerful midnight meditation and Satsang.
Mahashivratri is one of the largest and most
significant sacred festival nights in India.
This festival– the darkest night of the year –
celebrates the grace of Lord Shiva, considered
to be the Adi Guru or the first guru, from whom
the yogic tradition originated.
The night’s planetary positions are such that
there is a powerful natural upsurge of energy in
the human system.
“It is extremely beneficial for one’s physical
and spiritual well-being to remain awake and
conscious in a vertical position throughout the
night,” a spokesperson from Isha Foundation.
Mahashivratri offers us a unique opportunity
to use the forces of nature for our well-being
and can be enhanced by Mahashivratri sadhana,
a preparation for Mahashivratri.
Register for the Livestream and join
Sadhguru and other prominent celebrities for
an all-night party with the divine that includes:
Explosive guided meditations accompanied
by Dance and Music
Nightlong Satsang with Sadhguru
Musical performances by eminent artists
Bask in the Grace of Shiva, The AdiYogi!
“In the Grace of Yoga with Sadhguru
during Mahashivratri is a unique online
program offering powerful yogic processes to
cleanse and master the five elements within
you for ultimate health and well-being,”
the spokesperson added. To get a glimpse
of previous Mahashivratri celebrations,
click here, and for Maha Annadanam, please
click here. For any inquiries, please reach out
to media.apac@ishafoundation.org.
Join the party with the Divine via
Livestream on March 12, 1.30 a.m - 1:30
p.m NZDT
athletes and spectators alike. We look forward
to welcoming everyone to enjoy this innovative
brand of badminton from New Zealand’s best
players and to showcase our incredible city.”
New for 2021, the NZBL will be playing its
opening round and Grand Final at the fabulous
SKYCITY Theatre, adding yet another
dimension to the entertainment opportunities
provided to fans.
Twenty-four of New Zealand’s best
badminton players have been selected to
compete in the NZBL, and there is a diverse
mix of established players and exciting new
talent. Abhinav Manota is the highest-ranked
player to take the court, and he is being joined
by many others currently sitting inside the
world’s best 100 players. The NZBL plays an
important role for players who cannot currently
compete overseas in BWF sanctioned events.
Tokyo Olympic hopeful and three-time
Commonwealth Games athlete Oliver Leydon-
Davis is eager to compete in the NZBL.
“I’m looking forward to playing the second
edition of the NZBL. It’s an exciting and
different way to play, with the new format
bringing the excitement to the fans as well.”
It is a sentiment echoed by fellow Badminton
New Zealand National Squad member Anona
Pak.
“The first season of the NZBL was really fun.
It was interesting watching the players grow
and develop as the league progressed and we
are all determined to do better and to take what
we learnt from the first season into the second
season. I feel the intensity is going to be there
from the first serve.”
The 2021 season of the Barfoot & Thompson
NZBL launched on February 16 and will bring
action-packed badminton to screens around the
country every Tuesday and Wednesday night.
Teams will battle through six rounds to
culminate in the Barfoot & Thompson NZBL
Grand Final on Saturday, May 1 2021, at the
SKYCITY Theatre.
Auckland Lantern Festival
postponed to 4-7 March
IWK BUREAU
The 2021 Auckland Lantern Festival has
been postponed to 4-7 March 2021.
Auckland Unlimited, which delivers
the Auckland Lantern Festival, has made
the decision to postpone the event following
consultation with key event stakeholders and
community leaders.
Mayor Phil Goff says it’s fantastic that the
Auckland Lantern Festival is able to go ahead.
The Auckland Lantern Festival is a muchloved
event and a great celebration of our
Chinese communities; I’m really pleased we’ve
been able to find a way to make it happen this
year.
Mayor Phil Goff says “Because it can only
go ahead at Alert Level 1, we have delayed it
by one week to allow more time for a return to
that level. It’s a good reminder also that we all
need to keep following the current COVID-19
health rules, to help ensure that we are able to
move down to Level 1 sooner rather than later.
“Thank you to Auckland Unlimited and Ports
of Auckland, as well as event and community
stakeholders, for working together to enable the
Lantern Festival to proceed.”
Auckland Unlimited Head of Major Events
Richard Clarke said the feedback from key
event and community stakeholders was clear –
a postponement is preferred given the current
situation.
Delivering the festival a week later than
originally planned gives Aucklanders the
chance to still acknowledge and celebrate the
significance of the event.
“This early decision also mitigates the
financial risk of cancelling at late notice should
Auckland not return to alert level one next
week,” Clarke said.
Over the past 24 hours, Ports of Auckland
has committed to making Captain Cook and
Marsden Wharves available for the new dates.
The event will remain ticketed, with the free
tickets booked online providing contact tracing
as well as crowd and capacity management.
The change in dates also means that the
festival will add further vibrancy to the
waterfront precinct on the first weekend of the
36th America’s Cup Match.
Auckland Lantern Festival is delivered by
Auckland Unlimited*, on behalf of Auckland
Council, with founding partner Asia New
Zealand Foundation.
For the latest updates, see aucklandnz.
com/lantern.