Wairarapa Students Triumph At National Tournament Of Minds

Wairarapa schools shone brightly at the Tournament of Minds (TOM) National Tournament, held at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington, TOM’s premium sponsor, on Saturday 13 September. The event drew 39 teams from dozens of kura across Aotearoa New Zealand, who gathered in the capital for a day of creative, critical, and collaborative thinking.

Tournament of Minds is an international team problem-solving challenge with four disciplines—STEM, The Arts, Social Sciences, and Language Literature—and two divisions: Primary (Years 5–8) and Secondary (Years 9–11). Teams of five to seven students work together to solve a broad, open-ended challenge, then present their solution in a ten-minute dramatic performance before judges and audiences.

At the National Tournament, teams were “locked in” for three hours and ten minutes without devices to devise their solution, before facing a Spontaneous Challenge that tested their ability to think quickly, creatively, and collaboratively. The competition was fierce, and the standard of execution was exceptionally high.

In an unprecedented achievement, three of the eight national titles were claimed by Wairarapa schools: Wairarapa College – Secondary STEM Champions, Hadlow School – Primary Social Sciences Champions, and Rathkeale College – Secondary Language Literature Champions.

These outstanding results mean the three Wairarapa TOM teams will represent Aotearoa New Zealand at the Tournament of Minds International Final in Sydney, Australia, on 31 October and 1 November 2025. The combined “Wairarapa TOM Team”—Wairarapa College, Hadlow, and Rathkeale—is now working together to raise the $60,000+ needed to send their teams to Sydney.

Tournament of Minds Co-Director Ruth Olds said the result was a remarkable testament to the region’s talent and teamwork.

“For three Wairarapa teams to win at Nationals is a phenomenal achievement. We’re so proud of their creativity, problem-solving, and collaboration. Now the challenge is to get them across the Tasman so they can showcase Wairarapa excellence on the international stage.”

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