Three Tauranga paddlers will line up at the world canoe slalom championships starting today in the Czech Republic.
Olympians Luuka Jones and Mike Dawson are joined by young C1 (canoe) tyro Ben Gibb at the championships at the Prague Canoeing Centre in Troja.
K1 specialist Jones is coming off her best world cup result - a 13th-placing in the latest round in Slovenia - and has used Prague as her European training base this year.
"The most recent world cups were good for me and I found a comfortable way to race and had a good mindset," Jones said.
"I really just want to replicate that composure this week and not to get caught up in the hype and temptation to try and paddle too fast, which can lead to penalties and mistakes. If I can have a race I am proud of then I'll be happy."