The event, organised by the Otago Goldfields Heritage Trust, attracted a record field of about 60 gold-panners, but steady rain and driving wind forced the organisers to cancel the teams event to shorten the day's programme.
The championships were held in conjunction with the annual Old Cromwell Labour Day market in the town's historic precinct, but the market was rained out.
The gold-panning champion for the third successive year was Bill Lind, of Haast.
He will represent New Zealand at the Australasian Goldpanning Championships in Ballarat in March.
Seven members of Mr Lind's extended family took part in the New Zealand contest, travelling from Dunedin, Timaru, Queenstown and Alexandra to compete.
Mr Lind said technique was the key to his gold-panning success.
"I've been panning for nearly 50 years, ever since I was 5 or 6, so I've got lots of experience."
The championships are held outdoors and competitors are each given a bucket of soil containing a certain number of gold flakes.
They have 10 minutes to pan the soil and place the flakes they find into a small bottle.
A new organising committee chaired by David Gatward-Ferguson, of Queenstown, ran this year's event.
Mr Gatward-Ferguson said it was a pity about the rough weather, but miners a century ago would have soldiered on in such conditions.
"They had to, they needed the money."
He paid tribute to the team of about 20 volunteers who were timekeepers.
"They're doing a fantastic job in the worst conditions imaginable."
A new section was added to the contest this year called the New Zealand Classic.
"Gold-panning has become more scientific these days and pans have developed and changed so we've introduced the classic, which is when all competitors use the same pan, a standard metal one the committee provides, rather than using their own pan."
The pastime of gold-panning was becoming more popular as the price of gold increased, Mr Gatward-Ferguson said.
"Usually, you only see people out in the Arrow River panning for gold from about the Christmas holidays throughout the summer.
"This year, I noticed lots of people out panning during the last school holidays - locals and international visitors."
