19-05-2025
On The Up: Whanganui dragon boat racer Anne Kauika heading to Germany for world championships
'I'm feeling really excited about going and competing, I have quite high expectations,' Kauika said.
'In Thailand we had a good campaign and came home with three silver medals. I'm not saying we are going to hit the podium; there are a lot more teams and a lot of unknowns, but I think that is the exciting thing.
'You know that you are going to leave 110% out there and you trust those around you because that's what they are there for - we'll see how it plays out.'
Kauika moved from her birthplace of Wairarapa to Whanganui 33 years ago. She has been doing waka ama since 2008 and decided to add dragon boat racing to her arsenal four years ago.
'I just went for my first paddle and that was me,' Kauika said.
Joining the world of dragon boat racing felt natural for her.
'The dragon boating is just fresh, challenging, there's different people and different places to go to, but mainly I love racing,' Kauika said.
'I think dragon boating is exciting because of the number of people that are in the boat and everyone has to paddle in time - it is so synchronised.
'I feel like I have a connection with water through being on a boat, not in it.'
Training can be challenging as there is no recognised Whanganui-based dragon boat club, meaning Kauika often travels to Waikato or trains on her own.
'Motivating yourself to get out there is sometimes hard, you have to re-jig things to make the most of the time you do have,' she said.
Kauika said her job at the Whanganui District Health Board was flexible which allowed her to dedicate time before, during or after work to train.
She said participating in F45 training had helped her on her journey.
'F45 has got me to the fitness that I haven't ever got to before. I know that if I can't get on the water to train, I can work just as hard, if not harder, at F45,' she said.
F45 Training Whanganui has helped Kauika fundraise for the world championships and she is nearly at the $10,000 mark.
Kauika's family is holding raffles and other forms of fundraising to make the trip possible.
The first Black Dragons training camp will be held May 24-25 in preparation for the world championships.
