Weightlifting and Mana Wāhine: A journey of strength and connection

Jamie's work seeks to understand how the sport can serve as a vehicle for resilience, self-worth and collective wellbeing among wāhine Māori and the broader community.

How weightlifting can foster Mana Wāhine values, creating spaces that promote not just physical strength but also cultural and emotional wellbeing, is the crux of Jamie’s research. Conducted as a case study in Aotearoa New Zealand, her study highlights the lived experiences of wāhine Māori engaged in weightlifting, showcasing how the sport provides a sense of whānau and belonging.

A key finding is the importance of safe spaces that reflect whānau structures. These environments enhanced the training experience, allowing wāhine to connect intergenerationally. Many younger athletes looked up to older women in the community, drawing inspiration from their lives, careers and attitudes. This role modelling, beyond immediate whānau, has ended up having a profound effect on self-development and wāhine feeling empowered.

By understanding how weightlifting cultivates wellbeing, community-based initiatives, coaching strategies and national policies in sport and health can be better informed. The overarching goal is to ensure that cultural identity and Mana Wāhine values are embedded into these structures rather than being an afterthought.

Jamie is balancing full-time study, raising two sons, running a business and competing as an Olympic weightlifter. Her journey has included moments of burnout and self-doubt, but these obstacles have been overcome through strong routines, whānau support and a deep connection to the research.

Jamie says Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University’s flexibility was a key factor in choosing where to study.

“As a distance learner, a parent and an athlete, I wanted a programme that could accommodate my lifestyle. The Development Studies department is home to incredible supervisors who are genuinely committed to making a difference. My primary supervisor has been instrumental in providing unwavering support and understanding.”

One of the challenges she has faced has been engaging in kaupapa Māori research. Jamie says holding space for wāhine Māori is both an honour and a significant responsibility. This work has deepened her understanding of colonisation’s impacts, particularly through a sport science lens. The emotional journey has been intense, but it has strengthened her commitment to her mahi.

“Success in this field is deeply rooted in the support of my whānau and the Development Studies faculty,” she says.

“My supervisors, Professor Rochelle Stewart-Withers, Dame Professor Farah Palmer and Associate Professor Jeremy Hapeta have allowed the research to be shaped in a way that is both academically rigorous and personally meaningful. Special acknowledgment is given to Te Wheke a Toi and Monica Koia, whose manaakitanga has provided a strong sense of belonging, even as a distance student.”

Time management and setting clear boundaries are crucial, Jamie says. Weekly plans are made in advance, with priority given to training, study, mahi and whānau time. Additionally, allowing flexibility for unexpected challenges has been essential. She says support from whānau, friends and academic mentors has also helped her to maintain balance.

Jamie says the decision to pursue Development Studies was an unexpected yet natural fit.

“A friend of mine introduced me to the programme, and as I learned more, it became clear that the values of Development Studies closely aligned with my own. The programme provided a space to critically examine systems, equity and empowerment, while allowing for the integration of academia with real-world community impact.”

“For those considering Development Studies, the advice is simple: if you have a passion for social justice, equity and meaningful change, this is the right space for you. Bringing lived experiences into academic work and challenging conventional perspectives is where true transformation begins.”

Professor Rochelle Stewart-Withers says Jamie is a hardworking, passionate and talented student.

“I feel like we hit gold with Jamie when we happened upon her for our Royal Society Marsden Project Bringing an Indigenous Perspective to the Field of Sport for Development. Jamie works hard and just needed an opportunity. I’m glad Development Studies at Massey could help provide this opportunity.

“She was an athlete, a mum and working part-time in the sport sector. She had enormous knowledge about her subject matter and brilliant connections. This has really helped with planning and doing the fieldwork.”

“She was also someone who had come into study in a less conventional way because she came to tertiary education as an adult learner. This was someone who already had a really busy life. The fact we are flexible and by distance has helped her not only bring together all the things she values - like gender empowerment, sport for social change, Te Ao Māori and research project design, but it has meant she has been able to do this on her own terms, not comprising her whānau and training space. We are all about relationships here in Development Studies, which seems to set busy people up for success.”