Orewa Surf Club star takes on world

Orewa Surf Club star takes on world

OREWA Surf Life Saving Club paddling sensation Teneale Hatton will represent New Zealand in flat water kayaking world cup events in Poland and Hungary over the next two months, with her eye firmly focussed on becoming the world's best.

The tenacious 19-year-old, who is currently studying commerce at Auckland University as well as training 25 hours a week, will compete in the K2 team event in both the 1000m and 500m, aiming to qualify for the World Championships in Canada in August. The world cup events (Poland, 22-24 and Hungary 5-7th June) will attract the best kayakers on the planet, she being considered one of them.

Teneale – who has been a member of the Orewa Surf Life Saving Club since she was eight – will be joined in the New Zealand squad by a mixture of Olympians and up and coming kayakers, Erin Taylor and Steven Ferguson to name a couple. (pictured left (on right) with Erin Taylor and Lisa Carrington).

She teams up with Lisa Carrington in the K2 and Teneale says they are aiming to complete the 1000m course in 3min 52 sec and the 500m around 1min 44 sec, which according to past results, would put them in the top nine crews in the world.

“I'm feeling quite excited and nervous as this is my first open international event for kayaking outside of Australia, but after coming out of a good kayaking and surf lifesaving season with the Australian Youth Olympic festival and a lot of competitions in Australia, I feel ready for a large international event like this,” says Teneale.

She says the Australians, Hungarians and Belorussians will the toughest competitors on the water.

In March, Teneale scooped triple gold at the Australian surf lifesaving championships in Perth

She comfortably defended the under-19 ski race title she won last year. She also helped her team claim victory in the under-19 women’s taplin relay, and was part of the open women’s ski relay team that won gold.

Teneale has been training for the world cup events on Lake Pupuke on Auckland’s North Shore as well as completing her gym work at the Millennium Institute. When she’s not training, she can be seen throughout summer patrolling the beaches in New Zealand and Australia.

As well as being a patrolling and competitive member of her club(s), she remains fully involved in the membership development area of the organisation and helps to instruct trainee lifeguards through the qualification pathways.

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