Jessica Terekia (He uri nō te whānau Cross – Waihōpai and Awarua Rūnaka) recently competed at Lake Kawana on the Sunshine Coast in Australia. Club teams from Aotearoa had to qualify at the National Waka Ama event held annually at Lake Karapiro.
As a member of Horouta Waka Hoe, Jessica was a key member of the Horouta J16 Women’s Squad and raced the V12 500m sprint, the V6 1000m turn race and the V6 500m sprint race. The event held from 10 – 15 May saw Jessica and her fellow crew win silver in the V12 500m sprint final, silver in the V6 1000 final and gold in the V6 500m final.
These are the rewards achieved after 18 months of training which included gym work, running, swimming and water-based work in preparation for the regional and national campaigns prior to qualifying and selection for the 2016 worlds campaign.
Jessica Terekia at the Worlds Championship in Australia.