Shearer Aidan Copp breaks world record in the Riverina

Kiwi Aidan Copp managed to shear 524 first-cross lambs in eight hours on Saturday at Gnadbro Station, breaking the 14-year-old record by five lambs.

"It was a big relief to break the record because I put a lot of time and money into this," he said.

The 34-year-old had been preparing for the massive feat for almost a year. He was completing regular eight hour days as a shearer followed by 20-kilometre runs in preparation of the day he took the shearing stand.

"I knew I had the fuel in the tank to get me through the day," Mr Copp said.

But, Mr Copp was hit with a warning during the first leg, which put pressure on his shearing - or risk losing the record.

"The weather was a big issue. The cold meant the sheep did not shear as well as I would have liked. The officials gave me a warning. After that I was just thinking I need to keep it together and avoid any mistakes over the next three runs," he said.

In the final stretch, Mr Copp said exhaustion and an injury almost got in the way - which he was able to overcome.

"I was throwing up on myself from fatigue. I was getting bad cramps everywhere, so it was really tough. I cut my hand quite badly as well," he said. "But, I knew I could shear a sheep in 53 seconds. It was just a mental game, keeping up the pace and doing one at a time."

With the world record under his belt, Mr Copp has his sights set on another challenge.

"I want to get the Merino-wool record and be one of the firsts to have a record for every breed of sheep," he said.

Former world record holder Dwayne Black was watching the live action, supporting Mr Copp in his effort to break his 14-year streak.

"It takes a brave, courageous man to step up to the plate and do something like this. A lot of people talk about a record, but not a lot of people put it on the line," he told The Rural on Saturday. "It is time to move it on."

Mr Black said shearing takes a lot of athleticism and should be treated as a sport.

"The general public think this is the amount a shearer does each day, but this is more like the Tour de France or Olympics. He has been training for months, preparing the best he can," he said.

"On a normal day, an average shearer would get up to 200 of these sheep - so half".

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