Around 3000 paddlers from 27 countries competed at the Championships, the big three nations represented being Tahiti, Hawaii and New Zealand.

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The event consisted of eight days of intense racing over a 500 metre course in V1 (single), V6 (six person), and V12 (twelve person) canoe categories, with 495 races in total.

Tony won an individual gold medal in the Master 70 V1 category, and a silver medal in the V12 team category.

Tony was also given the honour of being a flag bearer for the Australian team of 350 athletes.

“Clinching V1 gold was incredibly special due to the highly competitive and close nature of the sprint, with the first three canoes only 2.29 seconds apart,” Tony told NOTA.

“Similarly, we were only 0.5 seconds off the gold medal position in the team event.

“The Tahitians are the world’s best paddlers by far, taking 40 gold medals, with the Hawaiian and New Zealand teams closely behind, so it was good to get one for Australia.

“We have some seriously promising junior teams coming on, with the under 19 boys taking a bronze in the V6, so the future looks auspicious for Australia.”

Tony currently holds three world titles, having won two gold medals in V1 and V6 categories at the IVF Distance Championships in Samoa last year.

Next year the World Distance Championships are in Brazil, where teams will compete in eight to sixteen kilometre races.

Tony says he will likely take a break from V6 team racing, however is considering defending his individual title in the V1 category.

“As long as my body holds up I will race World Championships into my 80s,” he said.

“In fact, in Hawaii this year the IVF made a new 85+ category and there were three teams in it, so the sky’s the limit.”

By Jacie WHITFIELD