Kiwi breaks world sheep shearing record

Aidan Copp makes his way to a world record watched by Lou Brown (left). Photo / Supplied

A New Zealander became the latest shearer to set world records on both sides of the Tasman with a new tally for Merino crossbred lambs in Australia last Saturday.

Aidan Copp, (34) from Canterbury, but now based mainly in Australia, shore 524 border Leicester-Merino lambs in eight hours, breaking a 14-year-old record by five despite a cut to a hand which brought the attempt to a short stop near the end of the third of the four two-runs.

A transtasman panel of World Sheep Shearing Records Society judges, headed by South Island official Robert McLaren granted an injury break which extended the last run by over four minutes, Copp completing the day with successive runs of 135, 130, 125 and 134.

The previous record of 519 was set by Dwayne Black in West Australia in 2005, with runs of 131, 131, 128 and 129.

Aidan Copp after breaking the record. Photo / Supplied

The record compares with the strongwool lambs record of 744 for eight hours set by Irish shearer Ivan Scott in New Zealand in 2012.

Copp's record took place at a Gnadbro property in the Riverina, a farming region in the southwest of New South Wales.

He had some expert help, including fellow New Zealand shearers and record-breakers Lou Brown and Cartwright Terry, each also based in Australia.

Copp was already in the record books as one of five shearers who set a five-stand strongwool lambs record of 2910 in eight hours in a remote King Country woolshed in January 2015.