MEMBER PROFILE ✹
Canoe Race, World Sprints, Catalina Chan- nel Crossing and Na Wahine O Ke Kai, as well as various Kanaka Ikaika races and other single person wa'a races. Despite all her ac- complishments over the years, it’s safe to say 2022 was one of her biggest years. Within a matter of months, Kahakui was inducted into the Hawai‘i Waterman Hall of Fame and was part of the OCC crew who took first place
at the prestigious Hawaiki Nui Va‘a in Tahiti. The former achievement honors her as one of the finest aquatic athletes in paddling, and recognizes her for contributing, inspiring and perpetuating the connection we have to the ocean. Kahakui joins the ranks of other legendary OCC members including Duke Kah- anamoku, as well as Fred Hemmings Jr. (2010), Diane Stowell (2016), “Dad” Center (2014) and Walter Guild (2015), to name a few. The latter proves that even in her late 50s, Kahakui is still one of the fiercest competitors out there. “To be able to paddle with—and win—with OCC’s next generation, I couldn't have even dreamt that. To be able to be my age and have the opportunity to paddle with them is truly a gift,” Kahakui said humbly. Her athletic abilities have taken her around the world—from California to New York, Fiji to Australia, New Zealand to London and beyond. And though she has a laundry list of accolades, there’s way more to her ocean journeys than purely winning. She feels a responsibility to spread awareness about the ocean and how we are all connected to it.
Winning ways. Top: Kahakui sips champagne from the Muriel Macfarlane Flanders Cup in celebraon of the Senior Women's win at the 80th Macfarlane Regaa. Boom: Kahakui and Nicole Wilcox pose aer winning the 1992 Na Wahine O Ke Kai.
march / april 2023 | AMA 23
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