A Kiwi surf lifesaving sensation is battling against a competition of Trans-Tasman foes - and winning.
Eighteen-year-old Joe Collins has had an incredible rookie season on the All-Star Nutri-grain Ironman Series in Australia, finishing third overall.
"I was ecstatic to get into the series for one, then just went out and gave it my all," Collins said.
"I'm used to racing 18-19-year-olds and going into that [Ironman series] you can notice straight away just how much more intense and brutal it is around the cans."
It is a fantastic result for the young rising star, who could have a huge future ahead of him, according to his coach Kevin Morrison.
"He surpassed all our expectations just making the series," Morrison said, and believed Collins had the potential to reach the heights of former Kiwi world champion Cory Hutchings.
"Anything's possible.
"We wouldn't be out of place saying we could be seeing the best we've ever seen."
Studying commerce, Collins competes out of the Northcliffe Surf Club near Surfer's Paradise, where his teammates include Kiwis Corey Taylor and Ocean Ski World Champion Danielle McKenzie.
But Collins has not always been a natural in the surf.
The son of current Chiefs CEO Michael Collins, Joe spent many of his childhood years living in England as his father played professional rugby.
Upon returning home, the young Collins could not swim.
But the Fitzroy Club in New Plymouth quickly changed that.
"It's massive what they've done for me," Collins said.
"I've come up through the ranks, had people to look up to at the club, [and] really been coached and trained into what I am today."
As Cory Hutchings did a generation before, Joe Collins is the new Kiwi pushing the Aussies at their own game.
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