Aaron Hopa Explained

Birth Date:1971 11, df=yes
Birth Place:Hamilton
Death Place:Sea, off Coromandel Peninsula
Height:1.930NaN0
Weight:98kg (216lb)
Ru Position:Loose forward
Years1:1995-1998
Clubs1:Waikato
Years2:1997-1998
Clubs2:Chiefs
Repyears1:1997
Repcaps1:4
Reppoints1:5

Aaron Remana Hopa (13 November 1971 – 8 December 1998) was a New Zealand international rugby union player whose career was cut short when he died in a diving accident at sea.

Early life

Hopa was born in 1971 in Hamilton, Waikato, a province of New Zealand's north island.

Career

He was an All Black in 1997 and played four matches on that year's tour of Britain and Ireland.[1] He played for Waikato at provincial level including the Ranfurly Shield winning team in 1997 and he also played for the Chiefs in the Super 12. Hopa was outstanding in his position of loose forward.

Death

In 1998, Hopa drowned in an accident while on a diving expedition near Slipper Island, off the Coromandel Peninsula coast of Waikato.[1] He was 27.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: All Black dead in diving accident. 15 July 2022. 30 June 2000. NZ Herald. https://web.archive.org/web/20170326225535/http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=140. 26 March 2017. dead.