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Boom time for sport

While the boomerang is a national icon, getting one to come back is a challenging feat for most Australians.

But for the 90 competitors descending on Perth for the 2014 World Boomerang Championships, getting a good return is second nature.

"Anybody can compete against anybody, you get 60-year-old guys and 14-year-old girls on a level playing field," former world champion Kenny Barr told _The Weekend West _. "I first threw in a tournament a week after I picked up a boomerang and fell in love with the sport."

Throwers from around the world will be put through their paces in a number of different events, which start on Monday on the Guildford Grammar School ovals.

Maximum time aloft tests a throwers' technique and ability to judge the wind, with some able to keep their boomerangs in the air for well over two minutes.

At the other end of the scale is fast catch, where throwers must throw and catch a boomerang five times in less than 60 seconds.

"The world record for fast catch is 16.5 seconds," event organiser Leonie Metzakis said.

Entry for the competition is free, with competitors able to teach technique for those onlookers keen to have a throw themselves. For more information, go to wbcperth2014.com.