MANNING Dragon Boat Club coach Wendy Orman is off to her fourth world championship as a member of the Australian side.
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The championship will be held in Thailand from August 7 to 13.
Wendy, 62, is a member of the senior C (over 60s) squad. She previously competed in world events in Canada in 2015, China 2017 and Thailand in 2019.
Wendy is the Manning River Times-Iguana Sport Award winner for this week, earning a $50 open order at Iguana.
The selection process was exhaustive, starting at trials held in Canberra in January.
While she's been there and done that previously with team selections, Wendy said she wasn't confident of gaining a spot in the team.
"I'm never confident - I think I suffer from anxiety,'' she said.
However, the trials were just part of the process. Since the national championships in April squad members have been meeting regularly since, either at the Taree hub or with compulsory sessions held in Sydney. Wendy understands there are five other countries competing in the senior C section - with Canada expected to provide the main opposition.
Wendy's hoping to race in all available races in the mixed and women's divisions over the various distances - 2km, 1km, 500m and 200m.
"I've never been in the mixed crew because I'm not quite strong enough, but I'm hoping to get a chance this year,'' she said.
"I'm just hoping we beat Canada, they're always our biggest rivals. They train all through winter because they have indoor facilities.''
Wendy started dragon boat racing while living in Japan.
"I was married to a US Navy lieutenant and we were stationed there,'' she said.
"The navy wives got together to go in the annual Naha City Festival and part of the festival was dragon boat racing.''
However, they couldn't train in a dragon boat for varying reasons.
"We had to stand in the water up to our waist and train about three times a week. On the day we thrown into these massive boats that are twice as long as the ones we paddle in now. It was full-on and very hard.''
After returning to Australia Wendy started paddling with the Great Lakes Pearl Dragons at Forster before moving to the Manning club three years ago.
She started started coaching in 2012 and she's proud of the way the sport is gaining traction in the Manning, with the club's membership steadily building on the back of Learn2Paddle programs.
"It's such a great sport - not just for retirees, but for younger people as well,'' she said.
"We're starting to get a lot of 40 and 50-year-olds in our club, which is absolutely fantastic.''
Wendy intends to be paddling for a few more years yet.
"Retire? Never,'' she said.
"Unless I get an injury I intend to keep paddling well into the future.''
