Tauranga’s long-time paddlers Karen Moses and Eve Tregerthan found success at the recent world championships.

The pair from Tauranga Moana Outrigger Canoe Club represented New Zealand in the recent Waka Ama Sprint World Championships and the Queen Lili’uokalani long-distance canoe race in Hawaii.

In Hilo, they competed in the hot Hawaiian summer weather and their team secured a silver medal in the women’s Master’s 75 double-hulled race and a bronze in the turns race despite facing challenging sea conditions and unfamiliar waka designs that Moses and Tregerthan hadn’t used before.

The medals Karen Moses received at the world championships. Photo supplied.

Their team included members from around the country – Queenstown, Porirua, Ōtaki and Auckland and Moses and Tregerthan from Tauranga.

In The Queen Lili’uokalani, which is the largest distance waka ama race in the world, the pair teamed up with four Australians for the 10km race and astonishingly won first place in the Master’s 70 Mixed Category.

“We hadn’t met the crew before the morning of the race. We went out for a paddle for about 10-15 minutes to ensure the seating for the balance in the boat was right,” said Moses.

Karen Moses, Eve Tregerthan and the crew at the 2024 Waka Ama World Sprints in Hilo, Hawaii. Photo supplied.

“We had a very experienced steerer who knew exactly what he wanted from every paddler.”

There were 40 waka in the race, Tregerthan said it was a beautiful sight seeing them all lined up at the starting line.

The 2024 Waka Ama Sprint World Championships in Hawaii. Photo supplied.

This wasn’t the first time that they competed in worlds, Moses and Tregerthan had both paddled in worlds before. “We’ve had successes in the past, so we knew what we had to do as far as training was concerned,” said Moses.

Moses and Tregerthan have been paddling for more than 20 years, training rigorously around New Zealand from Welcome Bay to Queenstown in the middle of winter.

The New Zealand crew training in Queenstown. Photo / Supplied.

They explained how it was difficult competing in different environments that they hadn’t trained in before with different sea conditions and different waka designs.

In their 70s, the pair argue that Waka Ama is for all ages, and they aim to recruit more older women for their local club.

“It’s an amazing sport to do as you get older. It’s not just fitness, I love being out on the water in Tauranga, it’s really beautiful here,” said Tregerthan.

The Womens Master’s 75 double-hulled race in Hilo, Hawaii. Photo supplied.

The duo are looking at creating a 70+ women’s crew together from Tauranga so that they can represent their club in Tauranga when they go to regattas around New Zealand.

Now they have their eyes set on the next competition, the 2026 World Championships in Singapore.

They said this is going to need some fundraising as they have to self-fund their sport through selling handmade products.

Tregerthan knits socks and Moses makes merino products such s ponchos, neck-gaiters and scarves.

They’re looking forward to their next championship and hope that more older women decide to join the club and have a go.