Tonight we acknowledge the long and lasting contribution Ari Hallenberg made to basketball in Auckland and New Zealand.
Ari arrived in New Zealand from Finland in 1971 and in 1979 set up Global Sports Promotions with business partner Ian Shaw. Initially involved in football and athletics Ari saw the opportunity to develop the TV screening of the NBL with a trial run on TV2 in 1981 enjoying instant success. Global Sports retained the rights to the televising of the NBL through to 1989. Spectator numbers grew rapidly in the 1980’s and in 1987 Global Sports contracted the USSR National Men’s team to tour NZ and Australia. The USSR team played an American All Stars team that featured the likes of Tony Webster, Benny Anthony and Ronnie Joiner.
In 1992 the Auckland Caltex Stars were bottom of the NBL, the owners had spent all of the sponsors money and were abandoning ship with the season only at the halfway point – Caltex approached Global Sports for their help. Global Sports came to the party and continued on the next season with Tab Baldwin taking the helm as head coach. In 1995 the Stars, with Global Sports support, began a run of 5 championships in 7 years including a three-peat.
Ari was a Director of the NBL from 2005-2007 and continued his involvement in the game for over three decades using his skills to help in areas of sponsorship, media engagement, advertising and promotion, hospitality, and a myriad of other activities to ensure success.
In 2006 Ari became chairman of the newly formed Four Winds Gaming Trust. He and his fellow trustees supported many community sports initiatives in Auckland. Auckland’s basketball associations were regular recipients of grants from Four Winds.
Ari himself was a constant source of advice and encouragement through good times and challenges alike – he was personally invested in the social benefits that basketball offered young people.
Ari was the Finnish Consul General from 1985 to 2017 and in 2018 he became the first person in the Southern Hemisphere to be awarded a Knight Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland by the country’s president.
Ari passed away on March 9, 2022 aged 81 and is dearly missed.
The Star Award recognises the long and lasting contribution Ari Hallenberg made to basketball in Auckland and New Zealand.
Accepting this award tonight on behalf of Ari’s wife Margaret is Dillon Boucher.
