Henare Leads Golden Shears Semis

In the World Woolhandling Semi-Finals at the prestigious Golden Shears 2026 competition, Joel Henare emerged as the top qualifier, showcasing an impressive performance with a total score of 76.73 points. Henare's swift handling time of 31.73 seconds contributed significantly to his victory, complemented by a well-balanced score across the board, oddment, fleece, and blend points categories. Marika Braddick closely followed in second place, demonstrating commendable skill with a total of 87.80 points. Despite finishing the task in a quicker time of 29.02 seconds, Braddick's higher oddment and fleece points compared to Henare's laid her in second place. Keryn Herbert secured the third position, accumulating 96.05 points. Herbert was the fastest among the top competitors with a time of 25.27 seconds but faced challenges in the oddment and fleece categories, which elevated her total points above Henare and Braddick. The competition was tightly contested, with Racheal Hutchinson and Rosie Keenan rounding out the top five positions with scores of 114.93 and 124.94 points, respectively. Hutchinson managed a time of 29.67 seconds, while Keenan was slightly faster at 24.70 seconds, yet both faced higher point deductions in board, oddment, and particularly in Keenan's case, fleece points which significantly affected their rankings. Notably, the competition displayed a wide range of scores across the board, highlighting the challenging nature of the event and the diverse skill sets of the competitors. The top performers, Henare, Braddick, and Herbert, showcased their comprehensive woolhandling abilities, setting a high standard for the final showdown in the Golden Shears 2026 World Woolhandling Championship.

Top 6 competitors have qualified for the next round.