Newton Aycliffe axe throwing champion aiming high after 'hours of practice' competing against wife
An axe-throwing champion who perfected his skills in his back garden after trying to become better than his wife said he is "quietly confident" ahead of his performance at an international championships in Canada.
Carl Howe, from County Durham, holds the title of European axe throwing champion.
The Newton Aycliffe man is set to compete in the Wilson Cup international axe throwing championships, which comes with a £12,000 prize, which will be held in Toronto, Canada this June.
Mr Howe said: "Fingers crossed I'm confident, quietly confident.
"I didn't think I'd get as far as I did in the European championships. The sky's the limit I guess."
Video report by Rachel Bullock.
The 35-year-old said he perfected his skills in his back garden after being annoyed at losing to his wife when trying axe throwing for the first time in 2017.
Mr Howe said: "Me and my wife Cat went to a place in Sheffield and it turned out that Cat was really good at it and I was genuinely terrible at it.
“That annoyed that much that I went home and built a target in the garden and practised it for hours and hours, while she was at work, to get good at it"
Mr Howe's wife is also a champion in the sport and the couple have opened their own axe throwing centre after both becoming passionate about it.
The Valhalla North Axe Throwing centre in Newton Aycliffe is accredited by International Axe Throwing Federation.
Mr Howe, who previously worked as a bus driver for 12 years, said the centre is growing in popularity.
He added: "Saturday just gone we had 102 people through the door.
"We are predominantly a sports venue, so we run leagues five times a week."
The competition last month which saw Mr Howe crowned European axe throwing champion took a gruelling seven hours. He is now training everyday in preparation for the upcoming international competition.
Axe throwing is a sport which is growing in popularity. The International Axe Throwing Federation currently has more than 20,000 members spanning 150 cities and nine countries.
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