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National | Australia

NZ paddlers claim medals at Waka Ama World Championships

The Waka Ama World Championships are being held on the Sunshine Coast in Australia, today the first day of competition which saw the Elite paddlers’ race.

The competition began today, with Elite paddlers taking to the water. This is the biggest competition ever seen in the 17 year history of the regatta, which shows just how big waka ama is now. More than 2200 paddlers from all over the world are here this week to compete for gold. Both Elite and Para paddlers paddled today, with New Zealand winning their first medals.

It may have been heats today in the elite section, but it felt like finals already. New Zealand’s elite teams were out in force today, racing the best paddlers the world has to offer..

New Zealand’s first medal came from partially blindPara paddler Ronnie Nuku who won bronze. George Thomas made the final for the Para men’s v1, who paddled gallantly and was pipped on the line, having to settle for silver.

The men’s v12 team and the NZ women’s team were the first teams to represent New Zealand in the Elite section of the competition. The junior boys elite team won both won their heats easily.

Tomorrow is the last day of the elite competition, with more medals hopefully on the way.