Emma Twigg Wins Double Gold at New Zealand’s Beach Sprint Championships

Tokyo 2020 and two-time beach sprint world champion Emma Twigg won both the women’s solo and mixed double (with Michael Brake) at the 2026 New Zealand beach sprint championships at Orewa beach on 25 April.The championships included 28 different categories, including under-17, under-18, club, masters and open. B finals weren’t disputed in all, meaning that in most cases only gold and silver medals were awarded.

The podiums from the open events at the New Zealand beach sprint championships were:

CW1x:

1. Emma Twigg – Hawkes Bay
2. Erin James – West End
3. Holly Chaafe – West End

CM1x:

1. Matthew Dunham – Cambridge
2. Sebastian Fulton – Waikato
3. Ben Pechan – Port Vila (Vanuatu)

CMix2x:

1. Emma Twigg, Michael Brake – Hawkes Bay/North Shore
2. Erin James, Matthew Dunham – West End/Cambridge

CMix4x+:

1. Sebastian Fulton, Spencer Turrin, Holly Chaafe, Jenna-Lee Markgraaff, Emily Pengelly (c) – Waikato/Sydney/West End/Bay of Plenty
2. Coby Goode, Samantha Blanchard, Nathan Strachan, Angalla Carney, Ryan Slater (c) – Canterbury/Commercial (Australia)/St. Georges/Waikato/Sacred Heart
3. Sasha Robinson, Jameson McConnochie, Jordan Parry, Jemima Glaholm, Tallulah Kubaisi-Gallagher (c)– Waikato, Tauranga, Bay of Plenty