Jack Jordan of New Zealand performs during the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® World Trophy 2024 in Milano, Italy on May 25, 2024.
Photo/Supplied
New Zealand’s top axemen Jack Jordan has just won the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® World Trophy for the third year in a row – shattering his own world record time in the process.
Jordan, a King Country farmer, put on a Timbersports masterclass to beat a top international 16-strong field of the best
axemen on the planet to win the title for the third year in a row in Milan, Italy early this morning NZ time.
The STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® World Trophy format is like the 20/20 cricket of international wood chopping. It is a quick fire event with four
disciplines back to back (no rest in between) suited to competitors with superior fitness and endurance as they make
their way through knockout stages to the final showdown.
Jordan’s ‘three-peat’ was almost denied by Australian Brad De Losa in a dramatic semi-final which saw the Kiwi edge the
Aussie by the smallest of margins. In a virtual dead heat, Jordan squeezed into the final with a time of 57.65, just
0.32 seconds faster than De Losa. But in the final event against Czech opponent Matyas Klima, Jordan opened up a gap
during the second discipline (the underhand chop) and never looked back.
It was not just a personal best (PB) time for Jordan in the final, it was a new world record of 52.53 seconds – more
than a second quicker than the record he set last year.
Jordan, a former top level rugby player for the Taranaki Bulls, who also manages the family sheep and beef farm on
steep, demanding land at Kirikau 20 minutes outside of Taumarunui, says his natural fitness and long hours of wood
chopping training are the key to his dominance in this event.
“It’s a short sharp endurance test alright! All the training that I do at home I feel like that’s the secret. I truly
believe that when you’re in an event like this, you win it in your backyard at home.
“It’s pretty awesome to knock this one off three times in a row for sure,” says Jordan.
Earlier, Cleveland Cherry from Tokoroa came third in a 12-strong field in the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® Rookies (Under 21’s) World Trophy competition – going one better than his previous fourth place the last time he contested this event in 2022.
“It’s great to get on the podium and have a little bit of hardware to show for all the hard work that goes into getting
here. I’m pretty stoked,” says Cherry.