Waka ama: Rotorua crews pick up gold at Nationals

Rotorua's Te Au Rere Waka Ama Club crew Tikitapu racing at the Waka Ama Sprint Nationals near Cambridge. They are pictured in the heats of the J16 (under-17) men's W6 500m event on Lake Karapiro. Photo/Supplied

Rotorua waka ama clubs picked up four gold medals at the Waka Ama Sprint Nationals near Cambridge but missed out on any senior titles this year.

The 2014 Waka Ama Sprint Nationals were held at Lake Karapiro last week ending on Saturday. Two junior crews from Rotorua picked up gold medals last week but no senior crews were able to replicate the feat.

The best senior crew from Rotorua was the Manawa Kaha team from the Hei Matua Paddlers. The crew picked up two silver medals in the master women's category on Saturday, finding success in the W6 500m and the W6 1000m events.

The team, which includes Elizabeth Savage, Kelley Korau, Maylene Papuni, Renee McDonald, Tira Katene and Zena Wikaira, finished an agonising 0.3 seconds behind the winners in the 500m final on Lake Karapiro.

Meanwhile, Rotorua did have some success in the premier men's and women's divisions, grabbing two bronze medals. In the premier men's W6 1500m final, Rotorua's Te Au Rere Waka Ama Club crew OCC Explosive finished third.

Hei Matau Paddler's Team OPT 2 Twenty South finished third in the premier women's W6 500m final and fellow Hei Matau Paddlers team Taha Ki Te Taha also finished third in the W12 500m premier women's final.

Meanwhile, the best junior team from Rotorua was the Pukeroa girls' team who represented the Te Toki Voyaging Trust club. The waka ama club is based in Hamilton but features a branch at Okere Falls.

The Pukeroa team, made up of six Rotorua Primary School students, won all three of their events on Tuesday in the midgets (under-10) women's division. They simply blew away their competition which included 30 other crews.

Fellow Te Toki Voyaging Trust crew Waka Awhiowhio, made up of Rotorua and Hamilton paddlers, also won gold in the under-16 men's W12 500m event. The overall best performing club for Rotorua was Ruamata who finished tenth overall on the club points list.

More than 48 waka ama clubs and 1400 crews took part in the high-profile nationals competition. Other crews to podium in a final included Ruamata's master men's crew Lakers 1 and Ruamata's J19 (under-20) men's crew Koru's Up and Go.