The New Zealand University Games is a multi-sport competition held annually in each March / April between teams fielded from a large number of New Zealand Universities and tertiary institutions. It was formerly known as the Easter Tournament.
The first University Games was held in 1902 with 3 sports being contested - Tennis, Athletics and Debating. The games are run by University Sport New Zealand (USNZ), working closely with its member Students’ Associations and national sporting organisations; USNZ operates national, regional and international inter-university sporting competitions. The Games is the flagship event on the university sporting calendar and attracts 2200 participants in more than 30 sports and is one of the largest annual multi-sport events in New Zealand.
The Shield
The Shield is awarded to the Games Overall University Champion and was first awarded in 1923. The shield shows the sporting prowess of the Universities in New Zealand and the ongoing challenge to be the best. Otago University has been dominant in the past games winning the shield an impressive 35 times, with the next closest challenger Auckland and Canterbury Universities winning 13 times a piece.[citation needed]