More than 2,300 paddlers took to the waters of Lake Karapiro in January to compete for honours in the 2007 National Waka Ama Club Sprint Champs.

A record number of registrations forced organisers and hosts Ngā Kaihoe o Aotearoa to add a ninth lane.

Ngā Kaihoe o Aotearoa president Maggie Greening says that it was fantastic to have a record number of entrants including new competitors and that there is clearly a fast-growing demand and passion for waka ama.

Paddlers aged seven to 67 competed in the week-long regatta, using hoe in single, six-person and 12-person waka ama.

Teams participated in a number of categories including midgets, intermediate, juniors, open, masters and kaumātua.

Races were held over a range of courses including 250-metre, 500-metre, 1,000-metre and 1,500-metre sprints.

This year’s nationals follow on from the Waka Ama IVF Va’a World Sprint Champs held in March 2006 at Lake Karapiro, where Aotearoa took home the biggest pool of medals, totalling 63.