Now the chequered flag has been waved on the 2021 New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships we take a look back on some of the trends that have emerged during the successful month-long competition.

Rookie surf ski paddler Jay Marlowe has participated in the New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships to build up vital experience as he looks to target the Nugget Multisport Festival in Waihi in May.

As the 2021 New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships reaches a climax we chat to two paddlers – Ben McCallum and Ana Swetish – who have made it to the top of the standings in their respective paddle craft.

On a momentous night at the glittering Halberg Award Decade Champions ceremony in Auckland last night, the sport of canoe sprint toasted two awards as Lisa Carrington took out the Sportswoman of the Decade award and Gordon Walker was named Coach of the Decade.

A Tokyo-bound Olympic K1 sprinter might be an unlikely prospect to compete at the Manuka Performance Heads to Harbour Paddle Festival in Whakatane on April 3.

Using events like the New Zealand Kayak Marathon Champs (April 10-11) that fall between now and sprint nationals is also a good way to keep focused on racing and rack up valuable kilometres in training. CRNZ Development Coach Craig Mustard, who has a strong background in marathon racing having worked with a clutch of the world’s best marathon paddlers in South Africa, offers his four key marathon racing tips.

Multisport athlete Bailee Stratton believes the New Zealand Virtual Championships offers a great competitive opportunity to hone her surf ski skills after clocking 1:01:22 to move into third spot in a tightly-contested women’s surf ski division.

Waka ama star Tupu King will continue his transition into the world of surf ski and kayak paddling as he plans to compete at both the Heads to Harbour race – which doubles as the New Zealand Surf Ski Champs – and at the New Zealand Kayak Marathon Champs next month.

World Marathon K2 masters (M45-49) champions Garth Spencer and Vaughan Reed produced one of the performances of the weekend at the New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships, registering a super sharp time of 50:12 in the K2 boat.

The fact that the 2021 New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships is not just about the elite paddlers is perhaps best exemplified by the efforts of Mandy Heim.

CRNZ has spent a considerable amount of time evaluating the current risk of travel against the potential of athletes to perform or qualify an Olympic/Paralympic quota spot at the ICF World Cup 1, 2, Olympic Qualifier and Paralympic Qualifier in May.

The 2021 New Zealand Virtual Paddling Championships stepped up a notch during its first full weekend of action as Kiwi Travis Mitchell briefly took over the overall lead in the surf ski division with a time of 56:36 – only to be dislodged a few hours later by Daniel Peacocke (56:24).