Keepy Uppy World Record* Attempt!

As part of the exciting Play Week (26 October - 1 November 2024), we attempted to break a world record*!

Our aim was to smash the current world record* for the most people playing Keepy Uppy at the same time. Queensland holds the title with 702 participants, but with your energy and enthusiasm, we knew we could do better!

Our plan

We called on early childhood centres, schools, tertiary institutions, workplaces, retirement villages, building sites, hair salons - pretty much the entire community across Palmerston North, the Manawatū, Horowhenua, and Tararua districts to join in this epic challenge. We imagined classrooms, offices, and parks all buzzing with giant inflatable balls and colourful balloons, all bouncing in the air unison!

So we asked you to gather your friends, family, and colleagues to be part of this massive, synchronised game of Keepy Uppy!

When: 1pm, Wednesday, 30 October 2024

Where: Across Palmerston North, Manawatū District, Tararua District, and Horowhenua District. Wherever you are, you could join the fun!  We also had public locations where people could participate in this event.

• Palmerston North: B&M Centre (Arena 4), Central Energy Trust Arena, 61 Pascal Street Palmerston North
• Horowhenua: Te Takeretanga o Kura-hau-pō, 10 Bath Street, Levin
• Tararua: Bush Multisport Park, 57 & 74 Huxley Street, Pahiatua

How did we go?

The numbers are still coming in so check out the video to see how we're tracking so far and if we might be able to claim the world record (unofficially, of course!).​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

About Play Week

Now in its fourth year, National Play week will run from Saturday 26th October to Friday 1st November this year.

Incepted by Sport New Zealand - Ihi Aotearoa, national play week is a week to promote and celebrate the value play brings to tamariki, whānau and communities across Aotearoa.

Play is crucial for the development of our tamariki mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It helps to develop fundamental movement skills, encourages self-directed creativity, improves resilience and independence, assists with emotional regulation, and develops co-operation and social connection - play is a universal language. In adults, it can boost productivity, creativity and is a great stress reliever; and whilst we age, it can help maintain cognitive abilities.

For whānau, play encourages the release of oxytocin (bonding hormone), and as a community it is a great tool to improve social cohesion, develop connection and hopefully contribute to a reduction of anti-social behaviour.

Let's talk play workshops

As part of Play Week, Sport Manawatū is excited to offer tailored workshops designed to promote the importance of play in everyday life!

Our workshops are perfect for communities, schools, and workplaces looking to understand the benefits of play, overcome barriers, and find practical ways to bring more play into their environments.

Whether you’re interested in attending or hosting a workshop, we’d love to collaborate and explore how we can make play a bigger part of daily life. ​​​​​​

Photos from around the region

This event was proudly supported by

​​​​​​​*While we were hoping to make it an official world record attempt, we weren't successful in securing the necessary funds to pay the fee for that. However, we were still determined to beat the world record, official or not!