Cory Taylor. File picture
MIDWAY’S Cory Taylor and Olivia Corrin and their world champion International Surf Rescue Challenge Black Fins teammates will take on some of the world’s top lifesavers at Mt Maunganui in two weeks.
Australia-based Taylor will compete in the open men’s team with the first of three tests starting on November 30.
Gisborne Girls’ High School 17-year-old student Corrin will co-captain the 12-strong New Zealand youth team (under-18), along with Fitzroy’s Zac Reid.
“Countries from all over the world are travelling to this event and it will be cool to race against them on home soil,” said Taylor, who is also a member of the Northcliffe club on the Gold Coast.
“Our team look strong. We have an awesome bunch of athletes able to race at a level that gives us the ability to win the overall title.”
Taylor said the main competition would come from Australia.
“Historically they are so strong in the ocean and, with the team they have chosen, I don’t see this trend stopping.
“But it will be an exciting battle with them, as always, and I’m looking forward to it.
“Our strengths will come from our specialists. We have super-strong individual craft and swimming athletes to compete and give us the best chance to win each race, then we ironpeople can hopefully get close to the action to help them out.”
Since the Coolangatta Gold, where he came third, training had been a new challenge, Taylor said.
“Going from 20 weeks of endurance work, to then try to compete in a 15-minute ironman has been difficult, but also an exciting new challenge,” he said.
“I recently competed in the first round of the Ocean6 series, at Queenscliff Beach, Sydney.
“The conditions were testing, but I managed second place in the ski race, third on the board and fifth in the swim.
“I was also in the winning ski relay team and third-placed taplin team for Northcliffe.”
Taylor travelled to the Sunshine Coast yesterday for the second round of the Ocean6 series.
Corrin said that when youth team coach Matt Cairns (a former Waikanae club member now based at Papamoa) told her she was to be co-captain, she was honoured and excited.
Corrin recently spent two weeks training at Northcliffe with two of her surf lifesaving idols, Harriet Brown and Courtney Hancock.
“They are among the top female surf lifesavers in the world,” Corrin said.
“They were so welcoming and I learned a lot from them during my two weeks there.
“That (Northcliffe) is where I’m planning to go during the summer holidays before I move over there when I finish school next year.”
Brown and Hancock are in the Australian open team who beat New Zealand in the 2015 champs.
Australia won both the open and youth team events on the Sunshine Coast in 2015 “but not by much and I’m expecting close battles again this time round”, said Corrin, who made her debut for New Zealand as a 15-year-old in Maroochydore.
“The weather at the Mount won’t be as warm as Australia, and I hope that works in our favour. We (the NZ youth team) went over to the Mount for a weekend of training and bonding, which was good.
“We all get on well, which makes it easy for Zac and me to be co-captains.
“It (taking a leadership role) is something I enjoy. I coach 10-to-14-year-olds at Midway and love helping them develop their skills and techniques.”
Corrin warmed up for the international challenge by competing in the surf lifesaving pool championships in Auckland, winning gold in the 200-metre obstacle race, and silver in the 100m rescue medley and 50m carry.
“The surf challenge is totally different, but the pool champs helped keep my fitness up, and I love competing.
“I’m happy with my fitness. I’m doing up to 11 sessions a week with Midway and at Enterprise Swim team.”
The competition is held every two years and includes swim, surf board, surf ski and beach events.