Australian paddleboarder Charlie Verco won the Molokai to Oahu Paddleboard race in record time on Sunday, securing his fourth world championship just weeks after rescuing a woman from a great white shark off Coogee beach.
The 25-year-old from North Bondi completed the gruelling 52km crossing in 4 hours, 18 minutes and 3 seconds, eclipsing the previous record set by fellow Australian Matt Bevilacqua in 2019 by three minutes.
Shark rescue in June
In June, during a training session off Coogee beach, Verco heard cries for help from Leah Stewart, a 34-year-old teacher who had been bitten by a shark. Verco, a trained surf life saver, paddled her to shore as she lost consciousness. Stewart survived but required five surgeries, including an arm amputation.
“The shark surfaced, I saw its dorsal fin – it was big, about 3.5 metres,” Verco told Guardian Australia at the time. “I’ve only ever seen one shark bigger than that, and that was a tiger shark in Hawaii.” He added that she disappeared and then reappeared, and he helped her grab his board while paddling to shore.
Record-breaking race
The 27th edition of the Molokai race, considered the world championship of paddleboarding, was more straightforward for Verco. He finished nearly 50 minutes ahead of the second-place finisher in the unlimited paddleboard class.
“I’m so stoked,” Verco said after the race. “It’s always a challenge getting across the channel and each year it dishes up something different.” He explained that for the first three hours he just caught the bumps he felt like catching, and later picked up the pace when conditions improved. His father and brother were part of his support team.
Verco had aimed for the record last year but finished over 40 minutes outside Bevilacqua’s mark. “Last year I got a bit ahead of myself and started chasing time because I wasn’t sure if I was going to ever come back. It just told you a lesson and showed that you’ve only got to work with what’s in front of you. This year my goal was just to have fun with it.”
