Alexandra paddler Finn Butcher will get his chance to fight for a world title in Poland tonight after a brilliant qualifying paddle had him storm into the semifinals.
Butcher (21) qualified second in the under-23 K1 at the International Canoe Federation under-23 canoe slalom world championships in Poland yesterday.
Butcher recorded 78.95sec, a time bettered only by open world champion Jiri Prskavec, of the Czech Republic, among a field of 75 kayakers.
Butcher's dream run on the whitewater came after a frustrating start to his season and provided a massive confidence boost.
"I knew that a solid run would be good enough to qualify today, and I wanted to be through on that crucial first cut to avoid the repechage,''Butcher said.
"I only needed to finish inside the top 16 to safely qualify but to see first position come up when I finished - knowing I was more than a second up on some pretty quick paddlers - was an awesome feeling.
"It was crazy to watch Olympians and world medallists come down and slot in behind me.''
Butcher's mentor and first coach, Gordon Rayner, of Alexandra, is at the event and on hand to see his charge go through to the semifinals.
The semifinals involve the top 40 kayakers competing over one race and Butcher will be looking to continue his good form.
The semifinal will start about 9pm and the final will follow about an hour after the conclusion of the semifinal.
His father, Dale Butcher, watched the qualifying on the internet and has since spoken with his son.
He said Finn was thrilled with his performance.
Dale said unfortunately his internet connection went down just as Finn was ready to start but others quickly contacted him saying how well Finn had gone.
Getting close to Prskavec was an impressive effort.
Prskavec has had an incredible 12 months - he created history by winning the under-23 and open world titles in 2015, then headed Olympic silver medallist Vavra Hradilek to win the Czech Olympic spot in Rio.
Butcher had started the season well but then struggled to get a feel for the water.
After consulting with New Zealand coach Aaron Osborne, Butcher came up with a plan for his run yesterday and executed it perfectly.
"The course was fun and didn't have too much in it to worry about, bar one move in the middle where there was a spin or direct option.
"I opted for the direct which worked, and I was pretty stoked that I had the confidence to pull it off when the pressure was on.''
Butcher studied applied science for two years at the University of Otago but is now studying extramurally through Massey University.
He is on a prime minister's athletic scholarship.
