World campions: Horouta retain award for club with most points

CHAMPION TEAM: The Kaiarahi Toa master 40 women’s team won the V12 500-metre race at the Va’a World Sprint Championships. Team members were (not in order) Florrie Brooking, Kiwi Campbell, Maylene Papuni, Mihi Aston, Penny Scragg, Raanj Rapana, Ranell Nikora, Rebecca Hoani, Sara Williams, Siobhan Reti, Tui McCaull and Vesna Radonich. Kaiarahi Toa also won the master 40 women’s V6 500m and 1000m races. Picture supplied

Horouta Waka Hoe won the award for club with most points at the Va'a World Sprint Championships at Dorney Lake, Windsor, near London.

Six gold-medal-winning performances on the last day of the championships put an exclamation mark alongside the efforts of the other six days of the event.

Tairawhiti athletes featured in the elite section of the championships over the first two days.

This dominance continued into the club team races. Up to the final day, Horouta had eight gold-medal team finishes, one silver and two bronze.

Overnight (NZ time) they added six gold-medal finishes, two silver and one bronze.

Self Storage Gisborne Horouta Waka Hoe were the reigning points champions, having won the award at the last world sprint champs in Tahiti in 2018.

The 2020 champs, which were to be held in Hawaii, were cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

On the last day of these championships, Kaiarahi Toa women's teams from Horouta completed the V12/V6 doubles in the 500-metre races.

The Kaiarahi Toa open women's team won the V6 500-metre race in 2 minutes 16.32 seconds, and the Kaiarahi Toa master 40 women's crew won the V6 500m in 2:14.43 in the second-last race of the championships.

The open women were over two seconds ahead of the runners-up, from another New Zealand club, and the master 40 women were over five seconds ahead of the runners-up from Great Britain.

Kaiarahi Toa crews had already won the double-hull V12 500m races in the open and master 40 divisions.

Other final-day gold-medal-winning performances came from Horouta crews Puhi Kai Ariki in the junior 16 women's V6 1000 (with turns) in 5:30.89, Tama ki Te Rangi in the junior 16 men's V6 500m in 2:02.13, Manawahine in the junior 19 women's V6 500m in 2:11.96, and 2005 Toyota Corolla in the junior 19 men's V6 500m in 1:56.52.

The open men's crew Woolley Kumara won silver in the V6 500m in 1:55.26, and Puhi Kai Ariki took silver in the junior 16 women's V6 500m in 2:18.30.

Junior 19 women's crew Suzuki Swift took bronze in the V6 500m in 2:16.00, less than five seconds behind winning clubmates Manawahine.

Several crews finished just out of the medals on the last day.

In the V6 1000-metre races (with turns), junior 16 men's crew Hianga were fourth in 5:22.26, master 50 men's crew Te Moana were fourth in 5:15.29, and master 60 men's crew Tokomaru were fourth in 5:36.44.