The event had been expected to make a surplus of NZ$500,000 (£257,617/$417,749/€291,000)

The review, carried out by Government funding agency Sport and Recreation New Zealand (Sparc), claims the biggest factors for the loss relate to shortcomings in governance and inadequate financial management.

It says the financial monitoring was poor, and lacked commercial acumen and discipline.

Poor crowds also contributed to the huge loss.

A Rowing New Zealand (RNZ) company received NZ$1.5 million (£772,000/$1.2 million/€873,000) in Government funding for the event and $500,000 (£257,617/$417,749/291,000) from a Ministry of Economic Development fund.

Sparc chief executive Peter Miskimmin said the review was a stark reminder for those involved in hosting major events in New Zealand, including the Government agencies which invest in them.

"Running events is a complex and risky business, and those who take on the responsibility of hosting them must be careful and accountable," he said.

"Running a major event requires specific skills and expertise around event management.

"That must be reflected in the governance and management that's put in place, and the investment oversight."

The review was a condition of the Government agreeing to loan RNZ $1.3 million (£669,000/$1.1 million/€756,000) in February.

Miskimmin claimed operationally the event was a huge success.

"But the review tells us they were living beyond their means," he said.

"The key stakeholders in the event, including the board, have all proactively engaged and had input into this review, and have provided considerable feedback throughout the process."


Miskimmin said the findings of the review would be used to develop additional good practice guidelines for those running future major events, in particular around governance, financial management and ticketing strategies.

Miskimmin said that throughout the process, Sparc had worked closely with RNZ to ensure the event's financial problems did not disrupt the New Zealand team's preparations for the London 2012 Olympics.

"It's been a priority to ensure this doesn't impact rowing's high performance programme.

"That funding is not affected by this."

Following the publication of the report, Hamilton City Council claimed it remained happy in the NZ$300,000 (£154, 448/$250,622/€174,598)  it invested in the Championships towards marketing and subsiding transport costs.

The Council claimed it received a good return on its investment with theevent showcasing Hamilton and Waikato to a global audience.

But the city's Mayor Julie Hardaker admitted the report shows that major eventsdo carry financial risk, and organisers need to do their homework to make sure large losses do not occur.

Tom Mayo, the chief executive of the event, defended himself.

"The report put a lot of responsibility on my Board, 'You could have done better here and there'," he said.

"That's the nature of it.

"No event organiser is happy when you lose money.

"We were dealing with huge variables, from foreign exchange to ticketing, sponsorship, weather.

"All the stakeholders said, 'We like what you're doing' beforehand, so it's disappointing to have criticism after the event, rather than constructive criticism beforehand."

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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