From world champ to television host, Joey Nania has made a career doing what he loves on the water.
“Since I was old enough to love anything, I have loved fishing,” Nania said. “My fishing passion led me to tournaments at age 12, when my dad and I joined the Inland Empire Bass Club. That is where I learned to love the competitive side of fishing, and from those great tournaments, as well as individual club members, I quickly knew what I wanted to do for a living.”
“Tournament fishing gives me the platform to teach people about the sport I love,” Nania said. “It is a sport that is full of details and subtle differences. In my seminars, I always try to help the audience feel like they are there on the lake feeling every pebble before they get a bite. I love spreading the joy and passion of fishing.”
He said he has always been a competitive person, from playing baseball and basketball in his youth to fishing professional tournaments today, and he has always believed that competition and challenging situations make you stronger and “more equipped for all aspects of life.”
“I have been fishing professional tournaments since I was 19 years old,” he said. “That being said, I have only been fishing full-time for a career for the past 3 years. Before that, I worked for my grandfather’s pool company, as well as plowing snow in beautiful Washington state, where I grew up. While I was getting my start I also worked full-time at the Leeds, Ala., Bass Pro Shops, where I got to know tons of people in the Birmingham fishing market while still providing for my growing family.”
“Sweetwater TV” airs at 10:30 a.m. Topeka time Mondays, 2 p.m. Wednesdays and 4:30 p.m. Sundays on the Sportsman Channel and at 2:30 p.m. on NBC Sports.
“Having the opportunity to host a fishing show with my good friend, Miles Burghoff, has truly been a blessing,” Nania said. “It is the opportunity of a lifetime and it allows me to do what I love, which is teach people about the sport I love.
“Fishing truly is a passion for me, and my family and myself truly eat, sleep and breathe fishing as a family business. The fishing industry is full of great people from the top to bottom. If you love fishing, you are a friend of mine.”
To follow Nania’s trek through the Bassmaster Opens and his other fishing endeavors, you can check out his personal website at http://www.joeyfishing.com, the “Sweetwater Fishing TV” website at http://www.sweetwaterfishingtv.com or follow him on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @joeyfishing.
“When I’m not on the water fishing, I truly love having the opportunity to share with people across the country more about myself, my family, and the sport I love,” Nania said. “In the past 12 years, I have met an incredible amount of people. I consider almost every one of them a friend, and we all get along well because we are addicted to the sport of fishing.”