NORWALK, Iowa — Fishing is known to be a popular pastime, but isn't always thought of as a competitive sport.
However, Norwalk teenager Evan Powell is making a name for himself in the fishing world.
A hobby that began during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic now into a competitive and everyday thing for Evan.
“I have a lot of people come up to me and talk to me about, they don’t know what it is, or they’ve never heard of it," Evan said. "There’s like endless possibilities, you can do whatever you want, whenever. It’s pretty cool being different than everyone else."
Evan travels all over the country for tournaments where he competes against anywhere from 50 to 400 people.
“This is an all day thing. You get up super early, you’re out on the water super early, in the conditions no matter what it is," Evan said. "Whether it is pouring or it’s 100 degrees out, you are out there for however long it may be."
Powell finished 51st in the Major League High School World Finals and made the 2023 Bassmaster High School All-State Fishing Team, making himself the man to beat.
“I’ve been fishing since I was a wee lad, and he knows infinitely more than I do," said Jason Powell, Evan's dad.
Competitive fishing is a sport different than most.
“I just enjoy it so much, I’m always thinking about where I could go next to catch more; of what I could do, what I could change to have a better chance," Evan said.
But this sport is significantly growing.
“In the last several years, the sport of fishing on a collegiate level down has increased over 700% nationwide, and just hearing those numbers is staggering to people like myself," Jason said. "Like wow, holy moly, 700%. What number were we at before this that we can increase 700 times."
Evan is even getting recruited by colleges and offered scholarships to join their fishing teams when he graduates.