A New Zealand Resident From Germany Flies The Flag For Downunder

South Island-based German shearer Robin Krause got her four days at the 2023 golden shears World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships off to a good start with a first-day finals placing in the Royal Highland Show Junior Championship today.

One of 11 women in a 39-strong, mainly-UK field, and having recently obtained New Zealand residency after six years in New Zealand, it was her first international competition, and she finished fifth in a six-shearer final of four sheep each.

Despite her lack of familiarity with the three breeds shorn during the event, one the supporting events for all-comers before World Championship competition starts early tomorrow New Zealand time, the 26-year-old shore consistently throughout the three stages, being sixth of the 12 qualifiers for the semi-finals, and fifth qualifier for the deciding shear.

It was won by Steven Wilson, of Ballyclare, Northern Ireland, and who was fourth in the heats and second in the semi-finals.

Krause was woolhandlng in Australia when she decided to come to New Zealand to work, learning to shear and now working for Pleasant Point shearing contractor Ant Frew, who will shear in the Royal Highland Open heats on Day 2.

During the New Zealand summer she shore in seven Junior finals in the South Island, including three national title events, for fourth at the Waimate Spring Shears and the New Zealand Corriedale Championships in Christchurch, and second at the Mackenzie A and P Show’s national lambshearing championship in Fairlie.

She had previously won three Novice finals in New Zealand.

Despite the lack of familiarity with the breeds, which shearers were not previously aware of, she described the experience as “good” and while the breeds were unexpected it was “not too bad.”

“I always seem to do better in the heats, never good in the final,” she reckoned.

In other World Championships supporting events, Masterton shearer Adam Gordon backed up his form as No 1-ranked Senior in the New Zealand season, by being the top qualifier for the semi-finals of the Royal Highland Show Senior championships, from a field of 87 who shore in the heats, part of a double access for the family.

Sister and New Zealand transtasman series woolhandling team member Cushla Abraham, a former Golden Shears Novice shearing champion, qualified for the Royal Highland Show Intermediate shearing semi-finals, from a field of 61.

But that’s where it ended, with both missing out on places in the finals.

Wools of New Zealand Shearing Sports New Zealand team members will complete New Zealand’s showing in the Royal Highland Show titles events overnight Friday-Saturday, before the Day 2 programme ends with the first stage of the Golden Shears World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships, Round 1 of the machine shearing heats.

The six World Individual and Teams titles, in machine shearing, blade shearing, and woolhandling, will be decided early-morning Monday New Zealand time.

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