Te Puke tree climber Andy Neverman takes on the world

A Te Puke man will take on the world's best tree climbers in this year's championships.

Andy Neverman is one of five people to represent New Zealand at the International Tree Climbing Championship on July 28 to 30 in the United States.

The Washington event will be held at the US National Arboretum and host more than 60 of the world's best tree climbers.

Mr Neverman won the national title as tree climbing champion in New Zealand in 2015, which gave him a spot at the Asia Pacific Championships in Hong Kong at the beginning of this year.

After returning from claiming the Asia Pacific crown, Mr Neverman said practice made perfect.

Mr Neverman has his own company, Arbor Creations, that operates around Te Puke. He also teaches and trains throughout New Zealand and in Singapore.

"It takes at least five years to have the skill level to perform what you need to do, so it takes a long time."

There was a worldwide shortage of arborists, he said.

Mr Neverman has been an arborist for about 15 years and doing the competitions for about 10.

The International Society of Arboriculture and The Davey Tree Expert Company organise the international championship.

Davey Tree's Sandra Reid said the competing climbers would demonstrate great skill and technique "but also extreme attention to safety and its importance in arboriculture".