A world shearing record which stood for 16 years was been broken in front of a frenzied crowd of more than 150 packed into a King Country woolshed today.
Stecey Te Huia, of Te Kuiti, and Sam Welch, of Waikaretu, shore a combined tally of 1341 ewes in nine hours to beat by six the previous record of 1335 set by Southlanders Darin Forde and Wayne Ingram in 1996.
Judges praised the quality of the shearing of the two men at Ter Hape, east of Benneydale, and only two sheep were rejected - both from the pen of Te Huia in the opening two-hour run from 5am to breakfast.
When the last sheep slid down the porthole just after 5pm, Te Huia was credited with 674 for the day and Welch shore 667.
Shearing Sports New Zealand chairman and 1980s records breaker John Fagan said it was a stunning day, with the pair recovering from a difficult first two hours after which they were 14 off the pace set by the Southland pair.
