He will defend his title as the New Zealand cherry-stone spitting champion in early January, in his home town of Cromwell, and the new Australasian champion will be a guest competitor at that event.
Mr Wardill was invited to the Manjimup Harmony Cherry Festival in Western Australia for the Australasian event at the weekend and told the Otago Daily Times, via email about 20 finalists took part.
''Only the best spit was marked, rather than measured, and it looked to be over 11m.''
''I beat the reigning Aussie champ, Clint [Thompson] but was narrowly beaten by the new Australasian champion, so was runner-up overall,'' Mr Wardill said.
Although unsure of the name of the new Australasian champion, he is pleased they will compete against each other again on January 4, at the New Zealand championship.
''We're hoping lots of people take part in the event and that he goes back to Australia without our national title''.
Mr Wardill was accompanied on his trip by his son Bob (13), who also took part in the event and won the under 15 section. ''Bob won the crown for the Kiwis on the day, winning $50, which equates to about $2 million New Zealand dollars, '' his father joked.
Mr Wardill returns home today and will continue training to defend his national title.
