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The 14-year-old doesn’t have huge shoulders or rippling muscles, but he does have one thing which might mean more – determination.

Sewak has been selected in the Australian team for the World Dragon Boat Championships in Thailand in August next year, only 18 months after he picked up a paddle for the first time.

He’ll compete with and against racers up to 17 years old in the junior races, but his lack of strength is more than made up for in technique and determination.

“You can have a ton of people in a boat who are really strong and really fit, but if they’re out of time, the boat’s going nowhere,” he said.

“You do need to be fit and strong but you need a lot of timing and technique.”

Sewak is doing all he can to hone his technique under Pinnacle Dragons coach Pearl Butcher, training four times a week in summer and as much as he can in winter.

However, he still has that physical prowess – Sewak had to undergo gruelling fitness tests, including 60 push-ups, sit-ups and more in a timed period, time trials and racing on the water before a dreaded beep test.

He races with the Pinnacle Dragons whenever they’re on the lake, and will take part in the James Sheahan team when it kicks off over summer, but will also be down on the water as often as he’s able to get the individual racer out.

He joined after watching a family friend give it a shot, and Sewak said he loved it “from the first moment”.

“The feeling I get when I’m out in the water … when I’m out and I’m paddling on the water it feels really nice,” he said.

It’s his first sport he’s loved, too – outside of playing soccer while living in Thailand he hasn’t had much to do in the sporting field.

POWERING THROUGH: Sewak out on the water of Lake Canobolas. Photo: MAX STAINKAMPH

“I’ve really enjoyed it,” he said.

His training is keeping coach Butcher busy too – she has to send videos off to head coach Serhei Cucsa and coach Mary Weaver to make sure his technique is consistent with the rest of the team, who are mostly based in capital cities along the east coast.

Butcher said she’d bring Sewak along to any regattas the Pinnacle Dragons attended, especially those in Sydney – so he had the chance to race with them, and next winter in the lead up to the world championships she would encourage him to head to Sydney as often as possible to train.

“He can’t compete and train with them as often as he’d like,” she said.

He just keeps going and keeps going and keeps going.
- Coach Pearl Butcher

However, she’s been impressed with how quickly he’s taken up the sport, but more than anything she’s been impressed with his determination.

“I was quietly confident he’d get picked, his commitment, his attitude and determination, and he has got a good technique,” she said watching him train at the lake.

“It’s not perfect and there are still a few things to work on...” she said before pausing to shout “HEAD UP” across the water at Sewak “… and that’s one of them.”

“He just keeps going and keeps going and keeps going… he’s done it all himself, but his mum and dad and his sister, they’ve put in a lot of support for him.”

Sewak thanked his parents Lindy and Vinay as well as sister Hannah for encouraging him, supporting him and driving him to endless trips to the lake.