Port Stephens Outrigger Canoe Club to host three day National Marathon Championships May 27-29

It will be the first time the Port club hosts the Australian Outrigger Canoe Racing Association's (AOCRA) National Marathon Championships, with president Tony Compton excited to welcome between 800 and 1000 paddlers from across Australia to the area.

"Hosting the national marathon is extremely important not only for our club and region, but for NSW as [the event] has previously been held in Queensland for several years," Compton said.

"It gives us a fantastic opportunity to showcase our beautiful area, fantastic waterways and provides a significant benefit to our local businesses and tourism community.

"The event promotes the fantastic sport of outrigger racing which caters for all ages ranging from minnows (8 year olds), to juniors and right up to platinum division (70 plus years of age)."

AOCRA president Michael Seay said it was a "great pleasure" to see the "pinnacle" marathon ocean racing event in Australia forge ahead this year after a "year of minimal national competition during 2021".

"This three day competition is a great celebration of athletic excellence, team work, camaraderie and leadership with the country's top distance paddlers in OC1, OC2, V1, V3 and OC6 who will compete in seven race events," he said.

Port Stephens Mayor Ryan Palmer welcomed attendees and said they would provide a boost to hotels, restaurants and tourism operators in the area which would support the local economy and see "businesses continue to flourish".

The championship event, which will run from Friday, May 27 to Sunday, May 29, has attracted 45 clubs from across NSW and ACT, Queensland and Western Australia.

World champion paddler Tupuria King from New Zealand will also attend and race in the individual event (OC1) as well as hold one-on-one and team paddling clinics throughout the weekend.

No Port Stephens teams will be competing in the championship as all hands will be needed to make sure the event runs smoothly.

"Due to the size of the event, nearly all of our members and many other volunteers are heavily involved running it in partnership with AOCRA," Compton said.

"That is not to say you won't see the Port Stephens canoes out on the water. We have loaned them out to several far north QLD clubs who weren't in a position to bring their own canoes."

The Port Stephens club last hosted a state title event in May 2021. The previous year, in March 2020, the club was scheduled to host a state regatta it but was cancelled due to COVID.

"So we are every excited and looking forward to staging this event after a couple of challenging years," Compton said.

"Our spectacular coastline and huge Bay makes Port Stephens the ideal location for such an event. The islands and Cabbage Tree and Boondelbah provide an awesome backdrop as we race around them in the six-man long course events.

"For the lesser experienced teams, the protected inside waters of the Bay ensure a safe paddling environment."

Racing will take place between 8am and 4pm each day.

On Friday, spectators will see single and double (OC 1 and 2) canoes on the water.

In the morning, there will be a 13km short race between Shoal Bay and Corlette, which has attracted 89 entries.

At 1pm the 17km long course event, which has 110 entries, will take place.

Compton said it is likely that this course will take place in the open waters near Boat Harbour or around the islands.

All six-man canoe (OC6) races, which will see between 30 and 40 canoes in each, will be held on Saturday and Sunday.

They will be run across a combination of inside and open water courses.

"The large 10m long canoes make for spectacular viewing," Compton said. "We have the best individuals and teams in the country attending the event so make sure you get down to Shoal Bay this weekend to see all the action."

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