Nelson athlete prepares for IVF Waka Ama World Sprints in Singapore
Dawson & Associates has been sponsoring Waka Ama athlete Callum Sebualala-O'Leary in his quest to represent Aotearoa/New Zealand at the IVF Waka Ama World Sprint Championships in Singapore. Callum is now nearing the end of this intense campaign, with the championship already underway and running through to 31 August.
The event brings together the world’s best Waka Ama paddlers, with athletes representing around 30 countries across a wide range of age and race divisions.
Callum is competing alongside his New Zealand national team crew, Team Pineula, representing the AROCA region. The crew will race in the Open Men’s W6 500m and 1500m events, aimed to progress through heats, semifinals and finals as they chase the ultimate goal - bringing home a World Championship gold medal for New Zealand.
The journey to Singapore has been a significant one. Callum has been competing in Waka Ama for more than a decade, with the past eight years focused increasingly on high-level competition. However, he says this by far has been his most focused build up with over 6 months of specific elite level training and regular training camps in Auckland.
At times the programme has involved multiple training sessions a day, with the physical demands matched by an equally important mental challenge.
Reflecting on the campaign, Callum says that one of the biggest lessons has been understanding the difference between simply having discipline and actually living with discipline every day.
“People can have discipline, or people can show discipline. Some people turn that discipline function on and off like a choice, while others live it every day.”
For Callum, the build-up to the World Championships has been unlike anything he has experienced.
“The challenges have not only been physical but mental as well. When your body is pushed and fatigued, it comes down to the conversations you have with yourself in those low moments and the attitude you choose to adopt to get you through that training session.”
Now, with the training load over and the World Championships underway, the focus shifts from preparation to performance.
For Team Pineula, the goal is simple - race hard, race smart and give everything they have to compete for the gold medal.
But beyond the result, Callum hopes the campaign will inspire other paddlers, particularly rangatahi (youth), to see what is possible through commitment, consistency and belief.
Representing New Zealand on the international stage is an achievement in itself but standing on the start line in Singapore with his teammates, knowing the years of training and sacrifice have led to this moment, will be something special.
The work is done. Now it’s time to race (Ki te Hoe!).