Canoe slalom: Hot action on Tarawera's waters

Tauranga's Mike Dawson is a major drawcard at this weekend's New Zealand race selection in Kawerau. Photo / Tevausa

Tauranga's domination of the national canoe slalom scene looks set to continue as New Zealand's top paddlers converge on the Tarawera River, Kawerau tomorrow and Sunday for the first two of four races in the New Zealand selection series.

Olympians Luuka Jones and Mike Dawson headline the list of high performing locals. They are both primed for a top performance after a three-week training camp on the artificial course built for the 2000 Olympics at Penrith.

Dawson, 28, says the time in Sydney with their coach was the ideal preparation for the season to come.

"It just gave us a chance to paddle on a proper Olympic standard white water and tailor our training to see where we are and check our progress over the winter," Dawson said.

He is well aware of the quality of the young guns snapping at his heels who are also eyeing selection for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

"I wouldn't be racing if I didn't want to do well, but it is hard. There are a lot of young guys coming through who are getting faster so I am sure the racing is going to be tight. I am expecting some good performances from those guys. But I hope I make the team as it is the first step in the process for qualifying for Rio."

Tauranga's Callum Gilbert, Malcolm Gibson (Palmerston North), Finn Butcher (Alexandra) and 16-year-old Jack Dangen (Tauranga) are the likely contenders to join Dawson in the New Zealand senior team for K1.

Jones' main competition for the K1 women senior team will come from local Tauranga under-23 paddlers Haylee Dangen, Jane Nicholas and Anna Higgins with two of them expected to fill the remaining two places.

In the men's C1 canoe class Tauranga paddlers are expected to fill the top three places. Ben Gibb is the favourite for the No1 spot with Shaun Higgins and James Thwaite pushing him hard. Fellow Tauranga paddlers Dan Munro and Luke Robinson should easily qualify in the C2 after their 2014 success with a silver medal at junior world champs.

The women's C1 senior team rankings are hotly contested between Palmerston North student Kelly Travers and Tauranga's Jane Nicholas and Haylee Dangen.

Dawson is proud to have helped inspire this next generation to get into the sport. "I think the measure of success as an athlete is if you can inspire just one or two young kids to get into the sport and take it to the next level."