It’s been 20 years since veteran wakeboarder Gavin Broadbent competed in New Zealand’s first ever national wakeboarding championships. This weekend he’ll take to the water again, and it’ll be seven year old son Fletcher who’s proudly stepping up to compete in his first ever ‘Nationals’.
The country’s most talented wakeboarders will compete for National titles this weekend at the 20th Annual NZ Wakeboarding Championships at Horahora Domain, near Cambridge.
Wakeboarding continues to grow in popularity, says Wake NZ President Terry Robinson, and the event has attracted the largest number of riders in a number of years. He believes this is partly due to a new ability-based format used for the summer season competitions leading up to Nationals. “We’ve seen a lot of new riders having a go, which has really given the sport a boost”.
Broadbent says he is “super stoked” to have been part of the development of wakeboarding in New Zealand since 1993. “In the early days it was all about running comps with mates. We started the NZ Wake Association in 1999 and I helped run the first official NZ champs that year”.
It’s a sport that attracts a wide range of ages and abilities, says Broadbent. “Twenty years later it’s awesome to still be riding and to see my seven year old compete in his first Nationals”.
Spectators can attend the Wake NZ Nationals for free. The event runs its seeding rounds on Friday 6th April, and finals on Saturday 7th April.
Prizegiving will be held in Cambridge on Saturday evening, with the season’s ‘King of Wake’ winners for each division also announced.
Full details of events can be found at: https://wakenz.co.nz/events/