Jack McManaway is a master of a few sporting codes.

The former Aquinas and Tauranga Boys' College student has been selected to compete overseas in both beach volleyball and basketball championships over the next few months.

Jack is a University of Waikato student who has been selected for the New Zealand Universities 1st Team for the FISU World University Beach Volleyball Championships in Brazil.

It's the first time a male competitor from the University of Waikato has been selected to compete at the World Universities' Beach Volleyball event.

The 21-year-old's trip to Brazil in early September will be followed smartly by one to Turkey after his University of Waikato basketball team won the National Tertiary Championships for 3x3 Basketball. That win meant the team qualified for the FISU World University Basketball Championships (3x3) in Istanbul in late October.

It's the first time the University of Waikato has won the University Tertiary Sport New Zealand (UTSNZ) event and qualified for the world championships.

'I feel very fortunate to be part of both teams as we make history for the University of Waikato on the world stage,” the law and commerce student says.

Jack's selection comes at a time when other young BOP/Waikato sportspeople are shining.

'Just recently top Waikato/BOP athletes excelled at the commonwealth games - athletes like Sam O'Dea (Otumoetai College), Bradley Fuller (Tauranga Boys' College), and Shaunna Polley (Fraser High School). It is exciting to see such a strong example being set and my aspirations are to springboard from their success on the world stage,” Jack says.

Jack says the trip to Brazil alone is estimated to cost $7200 per person (costs for Turkey are yet to be finalised). It's recognised as a huge financial burden for a university student so a givealittle page has been established to help him on his way. https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/jack-mcmanaway-nz-universities-tours

'Balancing High-performance sports representation with academic endeavours is a constant challenge - both physically, mentally, and financially. Efforts to secure sponsorship are ongoing and have become even more challenging in Covid times,” Jack tells.

The trips away won't be Jack's first representing New Zealand on the international stage.

He has been a representative basketball player for Tauranga City since U13(2012) and represented NZ on the Koru tour to Australia in 2016. He went on to play in the Waikato at U23 level in 2021 and 2022.

Volleyball also captured his interest at a young age. His team won the New Zealand Secondary Schools' indoor competition in 2019, with Jack judged the tournament's most valuable player.

He has represented the BOP through age grade representatives – from U15 to U21 – and this year played for the Waikato Senior Men's team that won a bronze medal at national level.

He has also played for the NZ U20 Indoor Volleyball Team that travelled to Florida to compete at the High-Performance Championships in 2019. He is now in the NZ Senior Men's Volleyball squad.

Jack picked up Beach Volleyball in Year 9 at Tauranga Boys' College, winning the U19 nationals in 2019. He has represented NZ on trips to the USA (California NZ U18), China (Nanjing for U19 World Championships in 2018) and Thailand (Roi Et for U21 Asian Championships in 2019). He has been a member of the NZ A Beach Volleyball Squad for the past two years.

Jack's volleyball prowess netted him a place on the University of Waikato's Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship. He is in his second year of study, aiming for a conjoint degree majoring in accounting.

He says 'giving back” underpins his value system – he has been involved in coaching and mentoring tamariki through various sporting, and other, opportunities.