After a summer of canoe races on Oahu and a successful Na Wahine O Ke Kai last Sunday, anticipation is steadily building for the Molokai Hoe, which has not been held since 2019. The Molokai Hoe is known as one of Hawaii's largest sporting events, an intense competition and cultural exchange between multiple teams from multiple countries, who begin the outrigger canoe race in Molokai while ending on Oahu. All the latest sports news from Hawaii's sports station COVID-19 and other organizational setbacks shut down the race in 2020, 2021 and 2022, while the race was canceled in 2023 in solidarity with the Lahaina wildfires. While the goal is to hold the race every year, those around the competition hope its absence has helped fondness towards it grow fonder. Unlike the Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational, which also has a goal of going every year but can't unless a certain set of water conditions are met, the Molokai Hoe was previously scheduled on an annual basis and hopes to be that type of competition again moving forward. The 2024 Molokai Hoe is set for Oct. 13. "It's the Super Bowl, it's the World Series, it's what every paddler aspires to do or if you get to that point, win it, and then you're at the top of the heap and that's the World Cup," said Jim Foti, the race director of Kanaka Ikaika Racing Association, who has won the event multiple times in the past. "People from all over the world, they look at this from the outside looking in and they dream about this. This is a dream to be out here and immerse and be part of it, and they understand that there's a cultural piece to it. "You feel the essence and the history of what we're doing. It is a sport and it's competitive but it's so much more than a sport. This is sport that has a lifestyle and cultural root." Foti noted the deep history of outrigger paddling, which includes its utilization as a vessel for navigation, voyaging, fishing and even war. Next Sunday, it will again be at the forefront as the Molokai Hoe is held for the first time in five years.