Swimming star takes out Supreme Award at 2026 Blues

Lewis was among the standout athletes recognised at the online ceremony, hosted by Student Recruitment Advisor Māori Tania Jahnke and Student Achievement Coach Jamie Hooper.

The decorated swimmer has had another outstanding year representing Aotearoa New Zealand on the international stage. He represented New Zealand at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, winning gold in the men’s 200m Butterfly and 400m Medley and silver in the 200m Medley.

Lewis received a Blue for swimming, as well as Distance Sportsman of the Year and the Supreme Award.

Lewis completed a Certificate in Financial Advice in Semester One this year. He says he is grateful for the support Massey provides to student athletes.

“I know there are many athletes here today who wouldn’t be able to study without the support of Massey. I personally thank you guys. All the best to the rest of the nominees and well done to everyone else.”

As well as his Commonwealth Games success, Lewis has also enjoyed strong performances at recent domestic and international meets. At the 2025 World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Carmel, Indianahe recorded a fourth-place finish and two fifth-place finishes. At the 2026 New Zealand Swimming Championships he won the 400m and 200m Individual Medley and 200m Freestyle, as well as placing second in the 100m Butterfly.

He also won the 400m, 200m and 100m Individual Medley and 200m Freestyle at the 2025 New Zealand Short Course Championships, before adding three gold medals and a bronze at the 2026 Australian Open Championships.

The Distance Sportswoman of the Year was awarded to Bachelor of Science student Erika Fairweather, Ngāi Tahu, recognising another highly successful year in the pool.

Erika also represented New Zealand at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, winning five medals. She claimed silver in the 1500m, 800m and 400m Freestyle events, as well as bronze in the 200m Freestyle and the 4x200m Freestyle Relay.

She also enjoyed success on the international World Cup circuit in 2025, winning silver in the 1500m Freestyle at the Carmel World Cup and silver in the 400m Freestyle at the Toronto World Cup.

At the 2026 New Zealand Swimming Championships, she won four gold medals across the 1500m, 800m, 400m and 200m Freestyle events. She also won four gold medals and a silver at the 2025 New Zealand Short Course Championships.

The Campus Sportswoman of the Year was awarded to Bachelor of Aviation Management student Hannah Li, who is currently ranked the number one open women’s table tennis player in New Zealand.

Hannah had a standout 2025 New Zealand Open, winning four titles: the Open Women’s Singles, Under 19 Girls Singles, Open Mixed Doubles and Under 19 Mixed Doubles.

She has also built an impressive international record. At the 2025 World Table Tennis (WTT) Youth Contender in Perth, Hannah reached the final of the Under 19 Girls Singles and the semifinals of the Under 19 Mixed Doubles. She was also a finalist in the Under 19 Girls Singles at the 2025 WTT Youth Contender in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

At the 2026 Hong Kong Open, she finished as second runner-up in the Open Women’s Singles Highest Division, while further domestic titles have included the 2026 South Island Championships, 2025 Table Tennis NZ Top 8 tournament, 2025 Auckland Open Championship, 2025 Manawatū Open and 2026 Wellington Open.

“It’s very exciting to receive this award,” Hannah says.

The Campus Sportsman of the Year was awarded to Bachelor of Business student Kaiha Gilbertson, who has represented New Zealand in canoe sprint.

He competed in the Men’s K4 500m at the 2026 International Canoe Federation Canoe Sprint World Cup. At the 2026 New Zealand National Championships, he won gold in both the Open Men’s K1 500m and U23 K1 500m, while also taking silver in the Open Men’s K2 500m and Open Men’s K4 500m.

Kaiha says balancing elite sport and university study has been challenging, but the support of Massey has helped him compete internationally while continuing his studies.

“I feel so privileged and honoured. Dedicating time to both my sport and studies has proved difficult but with the amazing support of Massey University I’ve been able to compete on the world stage as well as complete all my studies within the classroom to my absolute best ability. It’s awesome having that support.”

He also acknowledged the people who have supported his journey.

“I’d like to thank my friends, my family, my coaches and all other support people in my life who have helped me get to this stage. I’m really hoping that this can be the start of something amazing for myself and all other student athletes at Massey University.”

Three Sporting Excellence Awards were also presented to Phoenix Reid and Jessica Shirley for artistic roller skating and Kaylee McCracken for touch. These awards recognise exceptional contributions to sport in roles beyond individual competition, including coaching and officiating.

While not part of the Blues Awards, the Tertiary Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year winners were also announced, recognising performance, achievement and growth through representing Massey at the University and Tertiary Sport New Zealand (UTSNZ) National Tertiary Championships.

Chloe Gunn was the recipient of the Tertiary Sportswoman of the Year for her achievements in netball, and Zion Anderson was named Tertiary Sportsman of the Year for his success in 3x3 basketball.

All Blues recipients have been invited to accept their awards at the Sport Massey end of year functions in Auckland and Wellington. Hannah and Zion will be in attendance in Palmerston North and Auckland, respectively, to accept their awards.

Missed out on the action? Watch the 2026 Blues Awards below:

2026 MASSEY UNIVERSITY BLUES SPORTS AWARDS MAJOR AWARD WINNERS:

Distance Sportswoman of the Year

Erika Fairweather – Swimming

Distance Sportsman of the Year

Lewis Clareburt – Swimming

Campus Sportswoman of the Year

Hannah Li – Table Tennis

Campus Sportsman of the Year

Kaiha Gilbertson – Canoe Sprint

Supreme Award

Lewis Clareburt – Swimming

2026 MASSEY UNIVERSITY BLUES SPORTS AWARDS RECIPIENTS:

ARCHERY: Logan Dittert, Chisora Hada; ARTISTIC ROLLER SKATING: Claudia McLean, Phoenix Reid, Ben Shirley, Jessica Shirley; ATHLETICS: Rebecca Bailey, Connor Bell, Justin Cunningham, Elizabeth Hewitt, Caitlin Kirk, Olivia McTaggart, Nick Palmer, Holly Robinson, Zach Saunders, Tayler Trow; BADMINTON: Phoebe Young; BASKETBALL: Zion Anderson, Josh Batty, Johnny Helu, Rufus Rusholme-Cobb, Hamza Zahran; BMX: Megan Williams; CANOE POLO: Hayley Austin, Scott Gray, Anthony Massarotto, Klara Richter, Alyssa Shepherd, Georgia Wheeler; CANOE SLALOM: Oliver Puchner, James Senior; CANOE SPRINT: Jessica Cleghorn, Kaiha Gilbertson, Alicia Hoskin; CRICKET: Sophia Bolton, Jack Boyle, Ethan Campbell, Izzy Gaze, Ella Hogan, Nick Kelly, Bayley Latter, Hanu Rana, Jaskaran Sandhu, Lachlan Stackpole, Vanessa Taylor; CYCLING: Ethan Craine, Prudence Fowler; DANCE: Nadia Gyde; EQUESTRIAN: Chloe Armstrong; FLOORBALL: Cassey Busby, Kate Kirkman; FOOTBALL: Michaela Bangalan, Mackenzie Barry, Isaac Bates, Sophia Bolton, Catherine Bott, Kenya Brooke, Brooklyn Browne, Claudia Bunge, Mackenzie Butler, Phoenix Coursey, Callan Elliot, Manaia Elliott, Helena Errington, Aimee Feinberg-Danieli, Milla Green, Olivia Ingham, Ellie Johnson, Darren Juru, Sam Law, Anna Leat, Hannah Marginson, Pepi Olliver-Bell, Olivia Page, Adam Paulsen, Jesse Randall, Gabrielle Rennie, Moh Reynolds-Hatem, Addison Stewart, Sam Sutton, Kate Taylor, Vanessa Taylor, Caelan Tremain; FUTSAL: Milla Green, Darren Juru, Pepi Olliver-Bell, Adam Paulsen, Liam Percy-Fysh; GOLF: Yuki Miya; GYMNASTICS: Ava Baddeley; HOCKEY: Sabine Benson, Roimata Brown, Hannah Cotter, Kaitlin Cotter, Briar Duncan, Kaea Elliott, Emma Findlay, Sean Findlay, Aiden Fraser, Brooke Geary, Holly Hilton-Jones, Alex James, Kyle Keene, Leah Kent, Foy Kerkin, Katharine Kominik Fraser, Kane Russell, Zoe ter Beek, Tayler Trow, Maia Williams, Molly Williams, Nic Woods; INDOOR HOCKEY: Jarryd Russell; MOUNTAIN BIKING: Toby Meek; MULTISPORT: Caitlin Kirk; NETBALL: Kate Burley, Zalika Clarke, Blake Holcroft, Parris Mason, Atareta McCausland-Durie, Ana Cagi Moi, Amelia Walmsley; OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING: Matanoko McDonald; POLOCROSSE: Kyla Zielinski; ROWING: Stella Clayton-Greene, Matt Macdonald, Ben Mason, Joshua Vodanovich; RUGBY: James Arscott, Oliver Cole, Emma Dermody, Faythe Finau, Sophia Govind, Jack Gray, Holly Greenway, Anahera Hamahona, Mitch Hunt, Niko Jones, Orbyn Leger, Kade Manuel, Reuben Nelley, Manaia Nuku, Alena Saili, Rangimarie Sturmey, Te Maia Sweetman, Harono Te Iringa, Jack Whetton; RUGBY LEAGUE: Bailee Drossaerts Lake, Tyla King, James Marriott; RUGBY SEVENS: Kiana Pohe-Bright, Manaia Nuku, Alena Saili; SKIING: Ben Barclay, Ben Harrington, Alec Jackson, Toby Jackson, Mikayla Smyth; SURF LIFE SAVING: Sam Brown, Jasper Cornish, Michael Esterhuizen, Emma Neal, Phoebe Ozanne, Oska Smith, Freya Stolte; SWIMMING: Lewis Clareburt, Jasper Cornish, Chelsey Edwards, Erika Fairweather, Hara Hughes, Gina McCarthy, Cameron Gray; TABLE TENNIS: Hannah Li; TAEKWON-DO: Millie Devine, Sydney Devine, Brenna Greene; TENNIS: Sasha Situe; TOUCH: Kaitlyn McIntosh, Bailey Ngatai-Cribb, Zoe Sosich; TRIATHLON: Hayley Cornwall, Eva Goodisson; UNDERWATER HOCKEY: Josie Hunt, Georgina Shrapnell; YACHTING: Sam Bacon, Erica Dawson, Blake McGlashan.

2026 SPORTING EXCELLENCE AWARD RECIPIENTS:
ARTISTIC ROLLER SKATING: Phoenix Reid, Jessica Shirley; TOUCH: Kaylee McCracken.