CKC began a significant review of their Code of Safety in the first few months of 2024.  One objective of the updated Code of Safety is to include all current discipline codes in one document.  This overall CKC Code of Safety will highlight the common aspects for all participants while also indicating the specific needs of the different disciplines.

The initial review and update was done with a working group comprised of individuals from the Councils and community.

We now would like to invite feedback from the full community on the current draft of the document.  Please note that the current draft is in English only at this time.

REVIEW THE CODE OF SAFETY HERE

Opportunities for community feedback include:

1. Adding comments on specific items in the linked Google Sheet.
2. Attending one or both open zoom feedback calls (registration links below).

The general timelines for review and anticipated launch of the updated code are the following:

1. September 16^th, 2024– Community Feedback Zoom call #1: Register here
2. September 30^th, 2024 – Community Feedback Zoom call #2: Register here
3. October 8^th, 2024 – Deadline for all feedback to be received through the Google Sheet
4. November 2024 – Final draft feedback and review by Councils and Board
5. February 2025 – Final version approved by Board

For any questions, please contact Kenna Robins.

CKC is thrilled to share that we are running both an Eastern and Western Canoe Slalom Coaching Symposium this Fall. Both Symposiums will be facilitated by Mike Druce. Mike Druce is an Olympic Canoe Slalom coach and led the Canadian Olympic teams to the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games and was also part of the Australian coaching team in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016. In 2018, Mike Druce shifted towards coach education and led the revision of Paddle Australia’s Canoe Slalom coach development program. James Cartwright will support Mike at the Eastern Symposium and Micheal Holroyd will support Mike at the Western Symposium. Michael Holroyd is a retired National Team athlete, former head coach of the Alberta Slalom program and now leads the Alberta Whitewater Association. James Cartwright is a 3-time Olympian in men’s canoeing and former head coach of Ottawa River Runners and now leads the Canadian Canoe Slalom high performance program. 

All coaches, instructors, alumni, athletes and parents that are interested in advancing their technical knowledge and participating in one of the two symposiums are invited to submit expressions of interest by completing the application form below. Coaches that have previously completed Introduction to Competition or Competition Development may be invited to complete “Athletes in Training” and “Athletes in Competition” evaluations to receive NCCP certification credits.  

A maximum of sixteen candidates will be selected for each symposium, and priority will be given to participants that satisfy the prerequisites and/or have been identified by their Provincial/Territorial Organization. 

Canoe Kayak Canada has made the difficult decision to move the 2024 Canada Cup scheduled to take place in Shawinigan, QC from June 30 to July 1, to a combined event with the planned National Team Trials #2 in Montreal.

This combined Canada Cup and National Team Trials competition will run from Friday, June 21 to Monday, June 24.

One of CKC’s objectives around holding a Canada Cup includes the participation of our Provincial and Territorial partners in a high-caliber event serving as preparation of the 2025 Canada Games. Due to low participation, CKC has chosen to move the event from Shawinigan to align with National Team Trials to better meet the objectives for this event.

CKC wishes to thank the Club de Canotage de Shawinigan for their efforts in their bid and preparations for the event.  CKC knows that Shawinigan, its volunteers, and the commitment from the city is second to none and looks forward to events happening there in the future.

Further details, including the preliminary race card will be shared soon.

For any questions, please reach out to Kenna Robins, Director National Program Development at development@canoekayak.ca.

Being an athlete has been a big part of my identity since I started playing sports and when people ask what I do, I say I am an athlete. It is something I have always been proud of being, however, when talking about mental health it is important to separate that part of your identity. As someone who has struggled with mental health and still does, it can be incredibly difficult to recognize what your mental health needs if I don’t separate what Bret the athlete needs versus what Bret the person needs. Being a high-performance athlete and in the pursuit of excellence we are always told we need to push ourselves to the limit, but how can we push ourselves 100% if we are at a 20% mentally? In my experience, mental health has always been the hardest thing to recover from and the easiest thing to ignore. I started to open up about my own personal struggles with mental health approximately 5 years ago with the goal that if I can help one person with my story and experiences, it was worth it to be vulnerable about them. I have now lived close to half of my life with an obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety diagnosis and last year I realized the coping strategies that worked for me when I was 13 do not work the same today.

Throughout last year I recognized that I was filled with anxiety, and I was being consumed by obsessive thoughts, which at first, I was able to bottle up and say I will deal with this later, became overwhelming and affected me on and off the water. When ignoring my mental health started to affect my practices on the water, it led to a further spiral and pushing through it was counterproductive to my training and mental state. I kept telling myself that I am an athlete and I need to just keep getting through the day to get to my goals. Every athlete trains at a higher level when they are physically, mentally and emotionally healthy compared to when they are not, and despite knowing this, I had the tendency to gaslight myself by saying everything is okay when it is not. After struggling with this for longer than I needed to, I decided to separate what I need as a person and what I need as an athlete. I am a goal-oriented athlete and for this year I have decided to prioritise my mental health goals, and I am certain that working on these will help me get closer to my goals in training and racing. As mental health is unique to everyone, what I may give for advice may not work for everyone, but here are some things I have implemented that have been working for me.

1. When the training day is done, be done with thinking about training. Especially at training camps, the sport can be consuming and living in that mindset 24/7 can make the training blocks more exhausting than they need to be. Doing this has helped my mind relax more at night while allowing me to attack morning practice the next day more.

2. When the days are harder to get through, intervene with a favourite.
Whether that is watching a favourite movie, eating a comfort meal, or even changing a practice to one you love, a simple intervention in the middle of a difficult week can change the course for the rest of it.

3. It is okay to not be okay, camps are hard, this sport is gruelling, and there is no way to completely avoid that. This is where I have learned to focus on what I can control rather than what I can’t as we only have so much energy and attention, directing it towards what we can impact is the best use of energy.

Most of what I listed above is not ground-breaking advice, but if what I shared can help one person, either with managing their own mental health or to open up themselves, we create a conversation without stigma we can all learn and grow from. My hope is that we can have a hundred athletes in our sport share what they do to help their mental health and the more we have open conversations, the more everyone gets out of it.

Written and submitted by Bret Himmelman.

Canoe Kayak Canada is proud to recognize the 2024 Sprint and Paracanoe National Training Squad.

The National Training Squad (“NT Squad”) is comprised of athletes who are Senior (18+) in the upcoming season who have been identified as being on the pathway towards Podium Performances at the Olympic or Paralympic Games. Being named to the NT Squad is not tied to AAP Funding Support (Sport Canada Carding) or being selected to a specific competition team. It is connected to CKC’s High Performance identification program which invests in specific athletes through our National Team Centres and our World Class Coaching and Integrated Support Team.

“As we enter 2024, with eyes on Paris we are fortunate to be working with this strong group of athletes,” said CKC’s Chief Technical Officer, Ian Mortimer. “Within this group we not only have podium potential for next summer, we also have a core group with their sights set on 2028 and beyond.”

Athletes who have also been nominated for support through Sport Canada’s Athlete Assistance Program are identified in the list below by an asterisk. Please further note that because the NT Squad is restricted to 18+ athletes, some AAP-nominated athletes, both U18 and Senior, have been included below in separate sub-headings.

A detailed overview of the NT Squad is available here.

Sport Canada’s Athlete Assistance Program policies and procedures are available here.

CKC’s Sprint and Para Canoe 2023-24 AAP Selection Criteria are available here:

SPRINT | PARACANOE 

Paracanoe

Benjamin Brown

Brianna Hennessy*

Gabriel Ferron-Bouius*

Erica Scarff*

Mathieu St-Pierre* 

Women’s Canoe

Amelia Wojtyk

Anna Roy-Cyr

Élizabeth Desrosiers-McArthur*

Evie McDonald

Jacy Grant*

Jessica MacKay

Julia Lilley Osende*

Katie Vincent*

Sloan MacKenzie*

Sophia Jensen*

Zoe Wojtyk*

AAP Supported Athletes – Women’s Canoe

Abby Wojtyk (U18)*

Men’s Canoe

Alix Plomteux*

Andrew Billard*

Connor Fitzpatrick*

Bret Himmelman*

Craig Spence*

Nikita Ciudin*

Peter Bradley

Tyler Laidlaw*

Viktor Hardy

Zachary Kralik

Women’s Kayak

Courtney Stott*

Maddy Schmidt*

Maren Bradley*

Michelle Russell*

Natalie Davison*

Riley Melanson*

Tosha Besharah-Hrebacka*

Men’s Kayak

Brian Malfesi

Cameron Low*

Ian Gaudet*

Jacob Steele

Laurent Lavigne*

Nathan Koné*

Nick Matveev*

Pierre-Luc Poulin*

Simon MacTavish*

Vincent Jourdenais*

AAP Supported Athletes –Men’s Kayak

Jason Burkholder*

Jéremy Lantz*

Nathan Koné*

Canada’s top Sprint paddlers are ready to race to the podium in Concepcion, Chile for the 2023 Pan American Games! From Wednesday November 1 until Saturday, November 4, this event will showcase the top Sprint athletes on their journey to Paddle to Paris. Please find below important information including schedules and how to watch live.

Quick Links:

Official Santiago 2023 Website
Day to Day Schedules
RESULTS

Team Canada Pan Am Games Hub

Live Coverage of the Sprint events :
Pan Am Sports Channel
CBC Coverage

TEAM CANADA PAN AMERICAN SPRINT TEAM

Women’s Canoe
Sophia Jensen (Chelsea, Que.)
Sloan MacKenzie (Windsor Junction, N.S.)
Katie Vincent (Mississauga, Ont.)

Women’s Kayak
Toshka Besharah (Ottawa, Ont.)
Natalie Davison (Manotick, Ont.)
Riley Melanson (Dartmouth, N.S.)
Michelle Russell (Fall River, N.S.)
Maddy Schmidt (Ottawa, Ont.)
Courtney Stott (Pickering, Ont.)

Men’s Canoe
Connor Fitzpatrick (Dartmouth, N.S.)
Alix Plomteux (Lac-Beauport, Que.)
Craig Spence (Dartmouth, N.S.)

Men’s Kayak
Ian Gaudet (Dartmouth, N.S.)
Laurent Lavigne (Trois-Rivières, Que.)
Cameron Low (Toronto, Ont.)
Nick Matveev (North York, Ont.)
Simon McTavish (Oakville Ont.)
Pierre-Luc Poulin (Lac-Beauport, Que.)

RACE SCHEDULE (subject to change):

Day to Day Schedules
Wednesday & Thursday – Heats and semifinals

Friday & Saturday – Finals and medals

Canoe Kayak Canada announces the departure of Marc Creamer, CKC’s High Performance Para Coach. Marc shared his leadership and passion for Paracanoe and the sport as a whole for the last 7 years.

“Marc has provided strong leadership in our Paracanoe program over his seven-year tenure. Under his leadership, our Paracanoe athletes have risen to consistent world-level performance, and through positive collaboration with our partners across Canada, have seen our number of Para athletes grow,” said Ian Mortimer, CKC Chief Technical Officer, “We will certainly miss Marc as part of our leadership team, but wish him well in his new role with the Canadian Paralympic Committee”.

Marc has been an integral part of the Para paddling program within Canoe Kayak Canada, growing the National Paracanoe program and preparing the team for success through countless international competitions, including the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. He was also the Team Leader for the 2016 Paralympic Team in Rio, where he supported Canada’s first Paracanoe Team in the sport’s debut.

Marc consistently went above and beyond in his role, bringing exceptional technical and leadership skills to the team. He has played a critical role in the growth and expansion of Paracanoe in Canada. His passion and excitement for the sport will be missed here at Canoe Kayak Canada, but we look forward to seeing what the future holds as he makes his transition into his new role at the Canadian Paralympic Committee.

In the upcoming months, CKC will be shaping a plan to ensure both the Paris pathway athletes have complete support, as well as planning for the next two quadrennials ahead.

Thank you to Marc for your contribution to our sport and congratulations on your new role!

 Canoe Kayak Canada has officially launched the nomination process for the 2023 Excellence Awards.  

  The Club Development Award, the Coach Developer Award and Coach Recognition Awards are presented on an annual basis to coaches and club leaders who have made significant efforts or achievements in their communities.   

The Club Development Award will be presented to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club. The Coach Developer Award will be presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties.  

The awards are presented yearly at Canoe Kayak Canada’s Special Meeting of Members. The Summit will take place this year virtually on November 18, 2023.  

Click here to submit nominations.  

Deadline is October 18, 2023.  

For more information, contact James Cartwright

Canada on top of the podium at Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships

Paddle to Paris – 12 Olympic, 2 Paralympic quotas

Duisburg, Germany (August 28, 2023) – Canada captured 12 medals, including 5 gold medals, at the ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships in Duisburg, Germany. Canada also secured a total of 12 quota spots for the 2024 Olympic Games and two quotas for the 2024 Paralympics. The overall medal standings ranked Canada in 3^rd place behind Germany and Spain for the Olympic disciplines, and sixth on the Paracanoe medal standings.

Tokyo Olympic Bronze medallist, Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club) put on a remarkable canoe sprint clinic on the final day of competition, winning gold in the C1 500m, C2 mixed 500m with Connor Fitzpatrick, and the C1 5000m. Katie’s comeback in 5k race was revered as one of the best comebacks ever, grinding back from second last place on the first lap to World Champion on the finish line with a time of 25:57.25. Katie also paddled to a bronze medal finish in the C2 500m on Saturday with partner Sloan Mackenzie (Cheema Aquatic Club).

Vincent reacted on social media saying, “A week I will always remember! We had some broken bones a few months back but your faith and trust in me to come back stronger made this weekend all the better!” She went on to humbly thank her teammates, family, friends and all the support team around her.

The men’s and women’s K4 500m crews both finished 10^th overall. Their outstanding efforts in Duisburg locked up an impressive 8 quota spots for Canada for Paris 2024. Michelle Russell raced a career personal best to punch Canada’s spot on the start line in K1 500m.

Sophia Jensen (Cascades) also contributed to the quota count, finishing 6^th in her C1 200m final, and on quota reallocation, snapped up the last available spot for Canada.

Paralympian Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa River Canoe Club) had a banner event, securing a silver medal in the VL2 200m, bronze in the KL1 200m event, and a quota spot for Canada for Paris 2024. Rio Paralympian, Erica Scarff (Mississauga Canoe Club) also hit the podium with a silver medal in the VL3 200m event securing the second qualification spot for the 2024 Paralympics.

“The performances in Duisburg exceeded our expectations and we witnessed results that are a direct reflection of the hard work and commitment of this entire team,” said CKC’s Chief Technical Officer, Ian Mortimer. “We are thrilled with the quotas we have secured for Paris thus far and are very proud of this unified team!”

There were several other narrow podium misses and outstanding performances for Team Canada worth mentioning.

Here is Duisburg 2023, Team Canada by the numbers:

Medalists:

GOLD
Katie Vincent – C1 500m
Katie Vincent & Connor Fitzpatrick – C2 mixed 500m
Katie Vincent – C1 5000m
Rachel Cohen/Maddy Schmidt – K2 Unified
Matthew Casey/Laurent Lavigne – K2 Unified

SILVER
Brianna Hennessy – VL2 200m
Erica Scarff – VL3 200m
Jacy Grant – C1 1000m
Maddy Schmidt – K1 5000m

BRONZE
Katie Vincent/Sloan Mackenzie – C2 500m
Brianna Hennessy – KL1 200m
Sophia Jensen/Sloan Mackenzie/Jacy Grant/Julia Lilley Osende – C4 500m

Top 10 in the world:

Toshka Besharah Hrebacka – 4^th – K1 200m
Simon McTavish – 4^th – K1 5000m
Brian Malfesi/Vincent Jourdenais – 5^th – K2 1000m
Sophia Jensen – 6^th – C1 200m
Michelle Russell – 6^th – K1 500m
Gabe Ferron-Bouius – 8^th – KL3 200m
Mathieu St. Pierre – 8^th – VL2 200m
Connor Fitzpatrick – 9th – C1 1000m
Pierre Luc Poulin/Simon McTavish – 9^th – K2 500m
Courtney Stott/Riley Melanson/Nat Davison/Toshka Besharah-Hrebacka  -10^th – K4 500m
Nick Matveev/Pierre Luc Poulin/Simon McTavish/Laurent Lavigne – 10^th – K4 500m

For full results on the ICF site, click here.

It is with deep sadness that Canoe Kayak Canada recognizes the tragic passing of Dima Buzdugan, member of the Richmond Hill Canoe Club.

Dumitru passed away on Monday July 10^th, at the Welland General Hospital.  Canoe Kayak Canada wishes to express its deepest sympathies to Dima’s family, his wife and two children, and all those affected by his sudden loss.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made through a GoFundMe that has been set up in Dumitru’s honour.

Paddling brings people of all backgrounds and ages together, it waves away our differences and connects us to the water, land, and nature that surrounds us. It’s hard to describe the feeling you have in your boat, but we all know exactly what that feeling is.

Today, on Indigenous Peoples Day, it is important to remember that paddling is far more than competition, it is a pillar of life for First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples on Turtle Island and Indigenous peoples all over the world. We are all incredibly fortunate to share in the benefits and beauty of this sport on a cultural, spiritual, physical, and emotional level.

One organization that is leading the way to empower Indigenous youth and their communities through canoe-based outdoor recreation programs is Waterways Canada (Waterways). Waterways is an indigenous-led non-profit organization based in Manitoba that was created in the summer of 2020 by a group of individuals, two of which are indigenous competitive paddlers themselves. Their mission is to connect indigenous youth with their culture, lands and community while nurturing their mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Through their collaborative canoe programs, they provide indigenous youth with the tools they need to lead healthy lives and conquer any challenges they may face.

The programming Waterways provides enables Indigenous youth to connect to the water and rekindle their connection to elements of their culture that are critically endangered, such their indigenous languages. Many of their programs have grown exponentially since they began, with a high demand within Indigenous communities to get outside and embrace paddling while enriching their souls with their culture that was once lost. Waterways is proud to have programming in over 20 communities across Manitoba, celebrating and connecting Indigenous youth and communities through the sport of paddling.

To continue to grow this empowering and essential programming it requires significant funding. This year, Waterways was fortunate enough to receive a donation from a donor through the GiftPact Foundation that CKC helped facilitate that will enable this year’s programming to flourish and encourage Indigenous youth in Manitoba to continue to engage in their culture and identity through paddling. From supporting year-round planning to purchasing equipment, every dollar helps empower Indigenous youth to get out on the water and discover what they love about themselves, their culture, and canoeing.

There is a huge importance for indigenous youth and their communities to have an outlet and a place to connect with the land, their families, and their communities to rekindle their connection to their culture. For indigenous peoples, paddling is a way of life, a way of discovering their ancestry, learning powerful life lessons, and passing on their knowledge for generations to come. Waterways is an organization that is building a space for indigenous peoples to do just that, and it is something to celebrate today and every day.

For more information on Waterways and the work that they do, please visit Waterways Canada. You can also support Waterways through the Ultimate Canoe Tripping Raffle until July 4^th, 2023. Tickets are available here.

We encourage you to take the time today to honour, reflect, learn, and celebrate the history, culture, and resistance of all Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island.

Photos Provided by: Waterways Canada

Below are a series of information sessions to provide Clubs a chance to learn about these initiatives coming in 2023.

To sign up please see the registration links below:

No Links Available

RAMP SUPPORT GROUP

As we begin to work within RAMP and become more and more familiar, we wanted to establish an area where Registrars or Club admin can collaborate or ask questions. Since each club is going through the same systems, we thought it would be helpful to discuss with your colleagues.

To sign up please see registration links below.

ZOOM RECORDINGS:

February 2024 – February Q&A With RAMP Staff – System Questions And Information

Passcode: .sAZ2Unh

April 2024 – Q&A with RAMP Support Staff

Passcode: ^7d6BiqM

Canoe Kayak Canada is thrilled to welcome Anna Hetzler and Samuel Raiche to the CKC sprint high performance team in the new year. Anna will take on the role of Assistant Coach at the Halifax Training Center, while Samuel joins the men’s kayak program as National Team Coach at the Montreal Training Center.

“We are so happy to have Sam and Anna joining our full-time coaching staff,” said Ian Mortimer, CKC Chief Technical Officer. “Both coaches will add huge value to our athletes and bring their unique experience and skill sets to our technical leadership team in our National Training Centers.”

Samuel Raiche joins the CKC team as the Men’s Kayak Coach, working closely with National Team Head Coach, Anders Gustafsson and NT Coach, Chad Brooks. Samuel will share responsibility for developing sprint kayak athletes into world-class performers, while also prioritizing the mental wellness of each athlete in the program. Samuel brings significant knowledge and experience from his 10 years of coaching experience at Club de canoë kayak de Pointe-Claire and Club de Canoë de Course de Lachine.

“In 2022, the men’s kayak program stood out with an all-time best Canadian K4 team performance, in the K4 500m event, placing 5^th at the ICF World Championships – a testament to each individual driving the team success,” said National Team Head Coach, Anders Gustafsson. “Now all eyes are on the team to continue to deliver beyond these results in Paris 2024. Sam will be supported by the whole CKC team and many colleagues in Montreal at our National Training Center. This is a continuation, and a refinement of an evolving system and Sam will be a valuable team asset in supporting an athlete-centered approach to winning healthy and well. We want to thank the former men’s kayak coach, Mathieu Pelletier for his contributions to the success of the men’s kayak program.

Anna Hetzler will work closely with National Team Coach, Mark Granger, on the Team Red Development program as well as working as part of the coaching team at the National Training Center in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Anna has been working closely with CKC sprint teams over the course of the last eight months, filling a temporary leave position, and will now take on a new, more permanent role on the development side of the program. Anna has extensive coaching experience at multiple international events, including a supporting role at the 2022 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. This position is made possible through the collaboration and support of the Canadian Sport Institute Atlantic. 

We welcome both Anna and Samuel to the CKC team in the New Year. Samuel officially starts his new role on January 27, 2023 and Anna officially joins us on February 1, 2023.

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement to join Abuse-Free Sport, the new independent program to prevent and address maltreatment in sport.

CKC and its stakeholders will have access to the services of the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC), which serves as the central hub of Abuse-Free Sport, following a transition period which will end no later than December 16, 2022.

“CKC recognizes that safe sport is everyone’s responsibility. We’re fully committed to doing our part to support a growing national movement that is changing the culture of sport in this country. As part of that commitment, we’re pleased to sign on to Abuse-Free Sport and to soon have the OSIC to administer our safe sport complaints,” said Casey Wade, CKC’s Chief Executive Officer said. “The sport community has been asking for just this kind of consistent national program. It’s an important step forward for everyone involved in sport in Canada.”

Canoe Kayak Canada has adopted the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS), which is a requirement before it can become part of the Abuse-Free Sport program, and is making the required policy changes. The transition period will include further updating of our safe sport policies, information sharing to our members, and completing consent forms from individuals designated as UCCMS Participants.

Prior to December 16, 2022, participants who have experienced or witnessed abuse will continue to have access to independent third-party services through W&W Dispute Resolution Services – safesport_wwdrs@primus.ca.

There is more information about the Abuse-Free Sport program HERE, on the OSIC HERE, and on CKC’s page HERE.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 26 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships.

– 30 –

MEDIA CONTACT:

Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
613-530-6217
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada has officially launched the nomination process for the 2022 Excellence Awards.

The Club Development Award, the Coach Developer Award and Coach Recognition Awards are presented on an annual basis to coaches and club leaders who have made significant efforts or achievements in their communities.

The Club Development Award will be presented to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club. The Coach Developer Award will be presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties.

The awards are presented yearly at Canoe Kayak Canada’s Annual Summit. The Summit will take place this year virtually on November 18-19, 2022.

Click here to submit nominations.

Deadline is November 7, 2022 

For more information, contact James Cartwright.

2022 ICF Sprint Canoe World Championships

The 2022 ICF Sprint Canoe World Championships were a resounding success with several podium performances for Canada – a total of 8 medals, including 3 gold. While the hardware certainly shines bright, the Canadian generosity shone even brighter with several partner organizations stepping up in support of Team Ukraine. From logistics to funding and sponsorship, all hands were on deck in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

Leading up to the World Championship event, Canoe Kayak Canada partnered with several different organizations to facilitate and financially support Team Ukraine‘s travel, accommodations and participation at the event.

“It was really important for us to get them out of such a horrible situation so they can train and relax and be a part of the event. It’s really an outpouring of support from Canadians to the Ukrainian family and we are proud to able to support.” says Casey Wade, CEO of Canoe Kayak Canada.

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) sponsored all air and ground logistics for the Ukrainian team thanks to the generous support of Provincial Government of Nova Scotia. Many of the local clubs assisted with boats and supplies along with supply partners, Nelo and Plastex. Thank you to all of our Atlantic Division clubs who provided this much needed support.

Our thanks also go out to McInnes Cooper legal (Canoe 22 event sponsor) and the federal government – Darren Fisher, MP for Dartmouth, for helping Team Ukraine arrive safely into Canada. Dalhousie University sponsored Ukrainian accommodation, Aramark Canada provided meal services, and Canoe 22 supported event entries for the Ukrainian athletes. Halifax Regional Municipality and Need-A-Lift Inc also contributed to essential services for members of their team.

Standing in solidarity, CKC launched an apparel fundraiser with Ukrainian themed CKC sweatshirts sold with all the proceeds directed to CKC’s Team Ukraine support effort.

The community generosity continued to expand throughout the event with additional companies leaning in to make a difference. Vivoblu and Water for All reached out asking how they could get their life-saving water filters into the hands of the Ukrainian team.

Water for All works around the globe to serve those in desperate need of clean water by providing Vivoblu water filtration systems that are purpose-built for use in the harshest conditions.

“The need is hard to fathom, and we are working to help as many Ukrainians as we can, as fast as we can by working every available connection,” says John DeYoung, President of Water for All. “Five filters might not seem like a lot, but these 5 filters will serve 75-100 people for three years and every one of those people has a story, has a family, has a life filled with dreams they want to live for. We are so grateful that Canoe Kayak Canada made it possible for us to get these filters directly to the Ukrainian team.”

Team Ukraine won a total of 5 medals – 2 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze. They bring back more than just medals to their country, they bring back hope and stories of kindness in the world.

OTTAWA, ONTARIO (August 19, 2022) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce the 2022 Canadian World University Canoe Sprint Team heading to Bydgoszcz, Poland from September 16-18.

Thirteen student athletes from across country will represent Canada next month at the Brdyujście Regatta Course, recognized as the oldest course in Poland.

For more information on the upcoming FISU University Canoe Sprint Championships, click here. 

2022 WORLD UNIVERSITY CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM 

Coaches

The following coaches have been selected to support the following teams:

World University Championships

• Rowan Hardy-Kavanagh

JR/U23 World Championships

• Cheyanne Farquharson
• Liza Racine

Olympic Hopes Regatta

• Dominic Gomez-Granger
• Doug Tutty
• Marie Rousseau-Demers

Canoe Kayak Canada is looking for one individual to join the organization’s Board of Directors.  This position is representative of the Paddling Association members of CKC and will be instrumental in providing a member perspective to the discussions and decision-making of the organization.

The Board of Directors is comprised of a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 11 people.  Below outlines how these positions are elected or appointed by the two classes of membership within CKC:

• Each of the 3 Paddling Disciplines have 2 positions which they elect or appoint from their discipline members for a total of 6 positions
• The Paddling Association members elect 4 positions from amongst the entire CKC membership

Candidate must meet the following minimum criteria:

• Be 18 years of age or older,
• Have the power under law to contract,
• Be a resident of Canada,
• Have not been declared incapable by a court in Canada or in another country,
• Do not have the status of bankrupt, and
• Satisfies the requirements of the Income Tax Act in relation to the eligibility to serve as a director of a registered charity
• Be a current member in good standing of a Paddling Association member of CKC

In addition, the ideal candidate will have:

• Experience in serving on Not For Profit Boards of Directors
• Knowledge of CKC and its member disciplines
• A specific skill set or expertise that would be of benefit to the organization
• Knowledge of the Canadian sport system is an asset but not required
• Ability to commit approximately 10 – 15 hours per month to the work of the Board
• Willing and able to travel if necessary

This is a volunteer position with a term of three years.

Interested candidates are required to complete the attached form in order to be considered for the position.

Application Form can be found here.

Deadline for applications is midnight EST on September 5, 2022.

Please send applications to Chair of the CKC Nominating Committee, care of Kathy Hare by email to khare@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada is looking for one individual to join the organization’s Board of Directors as the Athlete Director-at-Large.  This position is instrumental in providing an athlete’s perspective to the discussions and decision-making of the organization.

As a full member of the Board of Directors, the Athlete Director-at-Large will have all of the duties and responsibilities of a Director and will participate in all Board meetings, discussions and decisions.

Candidates must meet the following minimum criteria:

• Be 18 years of age or older,
• Have the power under law to contract,
• Be a resident of Canada,
• Have not been declared incapable by a court in Canada or in another country,
• Do not have the status of bankrupt, and
• Satisfies the requirements of the Income Tax Act in relation to the eligibility to serve as a director of a registered charity
• Be an active or retired (within the last five years) member of a senior national team in any of the canoe racing disciplines

In addition, the ideal candidate will have:

• Experience in serving on Not For Profit Boards of Directors
• A specific skill set or expertise that would be of benefit to the organization
• Knowledge of the Canadian sport system is an asset but not required
• Ability to commit approximately 10 – 15 hours per month to the work of the Board
• Willing and able to travel if necessary

This is a volunteer position with a two year term.

Interested candidates are required to complete the form below in order to be considered for the position.

Application form cane be found here.

Deadline for applications is midnight EST on Sept 5, 2022.

Please send applications to Chair of the CKC Nominating Committee, care of Kathy Hare by email to khare@canoekayak.ca

Katie Vincent crowned triple World Champion

Dartmouth, NS (August 7, 2022) – Canada captured five medals, including three gold medals, on the final day of the ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships at Lake Banook in Dartmouth Nova Scotia.

Tokyo Olympic Bronze medallist, Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club) was crowned world champion three times today in front of a home crowd. While she missed the podium in the C1 200m event, finishing 5^th overall, she swiftly bounced back in the C2 mixed 500m event to win gold with partner Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Aquatic Club). Thirty minutes later, Katie lined up to win a second gold medal in the C4 500m with under-23 teammates Sophia Jensen (Cascades), Julia Lilley-Osende (Mic Mac Aquatic Club), and Sloan Mackenzie (Cheema Aquatic Club). Remarkably, Katie comes back for one more final race in the gruelling 5000m event to capture her third gold medal of the day.

“It was one of the best experiences I have ever had with so many amazing memories all week and today,” said Vincent. “Coming down the last two hundred meters was so exciting and so amazing to be competing in front of this electric home crowd. It’s fuel to our fire and you just take it all the way to the finish line.”

20-year-old Sophia Jensen captured her first senior world championship medals, taking home the silver in the C2 500m followed by a gold medal in the C4 500m event.

“I just went as hard as I could and knew I would be up there in the mix but didn’t know I was contending for top 2,” said Jensen. “These ladies are so strong and it was so much fun battling with them. I could hear the Canadian crowds and there is no giving up, you don’t want to let them down. I will never forget this moment.”

Hometown paddlers, Craig Spence (Cheema Aquatic Club) and Bret Himmelman (Maskwa Aquatic Club) won the bronze medal in C2 1000m event in front of a home crowd on Lake Banook.

“It’s unreal. I grew up here, paddling since I was five years old so this is like a dream come true,” said Spence. “Friends, families, coaches and everyone who has supported me throughout my career was right here with me so this can’t get any better.”

“This is something we’ve dreamed about since they announced this event four years ago. What an amazing feeling,” said Himmelman.

Team Canada concludes the 2022 World Championship event in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia with a total of 8 medals, three gold, two silver, and three bronze along with multiple top 5 finishes across the canoe, kayak and paracanoe disciplines. Canada ranked 4^th overall on the medal standings.

Summary of results

Dartmouth, NS (August 6, 2022) – Two bronze medals for Canada on day 3 of the ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships at Lake Banook in Dartmouth Nova Scotia.

Two-time Olympian Andréanne Langlois (Club de Canoë-Kayak de Vitesse de Trois Rivières) and Toshka Besharah-Hrebacka (Rideau Canoe Club) celebrated their new crew partnership in the women’s kayak today with a bronze medal in K2 200m event.

At 19 years old, Toshka is making her first mark at the senior international level while also inspiring a veteran teammate to rediscover her love for paddling.

“We both learn different things from each other,” said 29-year-old, Langlois. “It has brought back the spark in me that sometimes you might lose in your sport when you forget how much fun paddling can be, and for that, I am very grateful to Toshka.”

Both paddlers raced in the K4 500m event one hour prior to their bronze medal finish in the K2 event.

“The turn-around time wasn’t as difficult as expected,” said Besharah-Hrebacka. “We are both extremely confident in our crew and in our ability to throw down a 200m race. The biggest challenge was calming ourselves from all the excitement before our next race.”

The duo will be back on the start line on Sunday to contest the K2 500m A final at 12:47pm.

Canadian Paralympian Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa River Canoe Club) paddled her way to her second medal in Dartmouth, capturing bronze in the KL1 200m event. Brianna also earned a silver medal in VL2 200m event yesterday.

In Tokyo, Hennessy’s top finish was fifth in the VL2 200-metres, just 1.05 seconds off the podium.

“I don’t think it’s hit me yet and I think it’s going to take a couple of days,” said Hennessy. “I’m known to be slow off the start and my coach calls me the ‘comeback kid’ so it’s in the last 100m where I really try and ramp it up and catch up to all the amazing athletes here. I am truly humbled and can’t really believe I did this.”

Team Canada had many other notable results today including a 5^th place finish for the men’s K4 team, 5^th for women’s C2 200m, and 5^th in women’s C1000m.

Team Canada will race in 15 finals tomorrow on the last day of World Championship racing on Lake Banook. Live streaming is available at CBC Sports and Planet Canoe.

Today’s results

 How to Follow:

Schedule

Media Guide

Live Streaming

Media:

Colleen Coderre
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Dartmouth, NS (August 5, 2022) – Canada’s Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa River Canoe Club) captured the silver medal today in the VL2 200m paracanoe event at the Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships on Lake Banook.

Brianna crossed the finish line with a time of 1:01.42, two seconds behind Paralympic gold medallist Emma Wiggs from Great Britain.

“I’m at a loss for words,” said Hennessy. “I’m just proud of the team that I have and want to dedicate this race to the Ottawa River Canoe Club and all the kids back home who have had my back the whole time. I’m happy to be able to bring home some hardware for country. I’m very humbled.”

In Tokyo, Hennessy’s top finish was fifth in the VL2 200-metres, just 1.05 seconds off the podium. The multi-sport Para athlete and Paralympian will also be in contention for a medal tomorrow in the KL1 200m at 10:20am Atlantic time.

Canadian paracanoe teammates Erica Scarff (Mississauga Canoe Club) finished fourth overall in the VL3 200m today with Gabriel Ferron-Bouius (Rideau Canoe Club) finishing third in the KL3 200m B final.

Canada will race in multiple A Finals tomorrow on Lake Banook:

KL1 Women 200m – Brianna Hennessy

VL2 Men 200m – Mathieu St. Pierre

K4 Women 500m – Besharah/Langlois/Davison/Melanson

K4 Men 500m – Lavigne/Matveev/McTavish/Poulin

C2 Women 500m – Katie Vincent/Sloan Mackenzie

K2 Women 200m – Andréanne Langlois/ Toshka Besharah-Hrebacka

C2 Women 200m – Sophia Jensen/Julia Osende

C1 Women 1000m – Jacy Grant

The competition wraps up on Sunday August 7^th with additional podium opportunities for Team Canada in both canoe and kayak events. 

How to Follow:

Schedule

Media Guide

Live Streaming

DAY 5

DAY 4

DAY 3

DAY 2

DAY 1

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia (Aug 2, 2022) – Canada’s top sprint and paracanoe paddlers will line up on the start line at Lake Banook for the pinnacle event of the year from Wednesday, August 3 until Sunday, August 7. The event will showcase the top sprint athletes in both Olympic and Paralympic disciplines. For the first time at an ICF World Championships, PaddleALL exhibition events will be featured as part of the competition program.

Team Canada has a strong contingent of athletes racing on home waters this week including several Tokyo 2020 Olympians and Paralympians poised to paddle to the podium. Team Canada brought home 11 medals from the ICF World Cup in Krakow, Poland in May.

“It’s incredibly exciting to be part of the home team this year at the World Championships on Lake Banook,” said Olympic Bronze medallist, Katie Vincent. “I hope, as a whole team, we can carry the momentum from our successful World Cup tour and create some memories that will inspire the next generation of paddlers all across Canada!”

The event program includes races in women’s, men’s, and paracanoe categories of canoe and kayak in single, doubles and quad boat races. A total of 32 different finals will be raced in 200, 500, 1000, and 5000 meter distances.

What:

ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships

When:

Wednesday, August 3
Thursday, August 4
Friday, August 5

Schedule here

Where:

Lake Banook
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

How to Follow:

Schedule

Media Guide

Live Streaming

It is with deep sadness that Canoe Kayak Canada recognizes the passing of Jean Asselin, President of the Shawinigan Canoe Club.

Jean was instrumental in the development and amazing growth of the club in Shawinigan and was the President of the Organizing Committee for the 2022 National Championships being hosted in August by the club on the St. Maurice River.  His dedication to bringing the National Championships to Shawinigan, by showcasing what the sport has to offer to the community, and what the area has to offer to the sport, was infectious.

With a smile, amazing sense of humour and a commitment to growing the sport for all ages and abilities, Jean was an incredible part of our Canoe Kayak community and he will be terribly missed when we gather for the National Championships in a few short weeks.

Canoe Kayak Canada wishes to express its deepest sympathies to Jean’s wife Julie, his two sons, Jérôme and Jacob, and all those who he touched and work with so closely in Shawinigan and the Mauricie region.

Jean’s Obituary and Funeral details are available here.

MONTREAL, QUEBEC (June 23, 2022) – Canada’s best sprint and paracanoe paddlers will be lining up on at the Olympic Basin for the second National Team Trials event from Friday, June 24^th until Monday, June 27^th. The event will showcase the top sprint athletes in the country in the final test to determine who will represent Canada on the international stage this summer, including the ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships being held in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia in August.

Nearly 300 athletes, from the U16 category to the senior category, will be vying for selection to CKC’s National sprint teams – Senior World Championship team, U23 World Championship team, Junior World Championship team, and the Olympic Hopes team.

The senior sprint team is back in action this weekend following their 11 medal haul at the ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Cup in Poznan, Poland. This event serves as a final qualifier and selection requirement to be named to the Canadian Senior World Canoe Team.

“It is great to be back at the Basin here in Montreal with a full set of Team Trials after a three year break during the COVID pandemic,” said Ian Mortimer, CKC Chief Technical Officer. “I am proud of all of our athletes and coaches who push so hard to be their best here at the Olympic Basin, it will be exciting to watch the performances this weekend.”

Live streaming will be available on CKC’s YouTube channel for A finals from Friday, June 24 – Monday, June 27 with 2-time Tokyo Olympic medallist Laurence Vincent Lapointe commentating alongside former National team sprint paddler, Pierre Luc Laliberté.

This final set of trials will serve as selection for the following upcoming international events:

2022 ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Championships
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
August 3-7, 2022

2022 ICF Junior/U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships
Szeged, Hungary
August 31 – September 4, 2022

2022 Olympic Hopes International Regatta
Bratislava, Slovakia
September 8-11, 2022

All CKC international teams will be announced during the week of July 4-8, 2022.

What:
CKC Sprint and Paracanoe National Team Trials #2

When:

Friday, June 24
Saturday, June 25
Sunday, June 26
Monday, June 27
Refer to schedule here

Where:
Parc Jean Drapeau – Olympic Basin
Montreal, QC

How to Follow:

Download the 2022 CKC immediaC app on your smartphone or tablet to view the athletes, the draw and live results.
Go to CKC’s YouTube channel to view all the races on Livestream.

Media Inquiries
Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canada took home 11 medals this weekend, competing at the second and final ICF Sprint Canoe and Paracanoe World Cup event of the year.

Olympic bronze medallist Katie Vincent proved her prowess winning 4 medals on Sunday, including a silver in the C1 200m. Katie also secured a gold medal in the new C4 500m event, silver in the 5km long distance event, and silver in the C2 mixed 500m with partner Connor Fitzpatrick. She finished just off the podium in 4^th place in the women’s C2 500m with partner Sloan Mackenzie.

Sophia Jensen also paddled in the gold medal winning C4 500m boat with Katie, Sloan Mackenzie and Julia Lilley Osende, rounding a successful World Cup event with a total of 3 medals. She also won gold in the C2 mixed 500m with partner Alix Plomteux and took the bronze in the C1 200m behind her teammate Katie Vincent.

One of the final podium performances of the day was from Craig Spence and Bret Himmelman in the men’s C2 1000m crossing the line in bronze medal position.

There were many notable races that fell just shy of the podium in 4^th place position including Connor Fitzpatrick (Men’s C1 1000m), Pierre Luc Poulin and Simon McTavish (Men’s K2 500m) and the men’s K4 500m team that also includes Pierre Luc, Simon, Nick Matveev, and Laurent Lavigne.

Team Canada also demonstrated great strength from within the Paracanoe program with 4 medals among three Para canoe paddlers on Saturday. Mathieu St Pierre dominated his race winning gold in the VL 200m event. Erica Scarff secured a gold medal in the VL3 200m with her teammate Brianna Hennessy capturing two medals, silver in the VL2 200m and bronze in the KL1 200m.

The Canadian team will now head home and start preparing for National Team Trials in Montreal from June 24-27. This event is a qualifier for the ICF Sprint World Championships held in Canada (Dartmouth, NS) in August.

Results:

Event Website

The first-ever Canadian female canoeists to paddle on an Olympic course have officially announced their retirement. Laurence Vincent Lapointe (Sprint) and Haley Daniels (Slalom) have recently stepped away from elite-level sport, leaving an indelible mark on the sport and inspiring a generation to come.

Women’s canoe made its Olympic debut at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games – Over 80 years after men’s canoe was introduced to the Olympic program in 1936. Haley and Laurence were among the many actively lobbying around the world for women to be able to compete on the Olympic stage.

Laurence was the first-ever gold medalist in 2010 when it was first introduced at the ICF World Championships. She went on to win multiple world championship titles on her journey to Olympic silver (C1 500m) and bronze (C2 500m) with partner Katie Vincent in Tokyo. It was a unique and challenging road to success.

Laurence reflected in her retirement announcement saying, “I have accomplished everything I wanted to do by going to the Olympic Games and finally seeing women competing in canoe. Thank you to all those who contributed to my success.”

Haley Daniels is also a passionate paddling pioneer advocating for gender equality in women’s canoe and actively supporting her father’s recent decision to publicly announce his transition to a transgendered woman, named Kimberly.

“My mantra throughout the whole process is to be open and honest,” said Daniels. “I only get one family and one dad, so it was natural to support her transition and welcome this journey together.”

Kimberly became a certified international official for slalom paddling and was selected as an Olympic judge at Tokyo 2020. Kimberly was the first openly transgendered woman to judge at an Olympic Games.

“Sitting at the start line of the first Olympics that women’s canoe debuts as gender equal was the proudest moment I have ever had,” said Daniels via Instagram. “We pioneered a legacy for future women in sport to come and for that I can’t help but smile.”

CKC congratulates both Haley and Laurence on their retirements. We look forward to celebrating and featuring more Olympian retirements in the coming months.

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to welcome Jessica Kenney and Emmalee Nother to the staff team. Jessica will take on the role of Project Manager, National Program Development and Events while Emmalee joins the team as Communications Coordinator.

“We are thrilled to welcome both Jessica and Emmalee to the CKC team” said Casey Wade, CEO of Canoe Kayak Canada. “Both bring tremendous experience, energy and skills that will help strengthen our continued commitment and capacity to lead and support paddling in Canada at all levels, as well as internationally.”

Jessica Kenney will be responsible for coordinating and managing the delivery of domestic development programs and events as it relates to planning, budgeting, execution, communication, tracking and evaluation of programs in partnership with other key staff. Jessica will work closely with Kenna Robins, Director of National Program Development, the Senior Leadership team and other key staff.

“I am excited to be joining CKC and the Canadian paddling community,” said Kenney. “I look forward to working with Kenna and the team to build on the great work CKC is known for, while helping develop the National programming.”

Jessica brings a wealth of experience from her most recent role at the Canadian Paralympic Committee. As Senior Coordinator of Games Operations and Delivery, Jessica has completed the delivery of Travel Services and Games Registration for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games and 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympic Games. Jessica also held the role as Senior Coordinator of Fundraising Events at the Paralympic Foundation of Canada. Prior to joining the Canadian Paralympic Committee, she managed the satellite operation for the 2019 Red Deer Canada Games, managing the competition venue, accommodation and competition operations of three sport competition venues.

“We are really looking forward to having Jessica as part of the team,” said Kenna Robins, Director of National Program Development. “As a Certified Project Manager, she has extensive experience in project management, volunteer management, and successful event delivery. Jessica’s positive attitude and excellent customer service skills will certainly be a great asset to CKC and the broader community.”

Emmalee Nother joins the CKC team as Communications Coordinator. Working closely with the Communications Lead, Colleen Coderre and the Senior Leadership Team, Emmalee will support the delivery of CKC’s communications, including event communications, media relations, and the digital strategy.

“I am incredibly excited and grateful for the opportunity to join Colleen and the CKC Team,” said Nother. “With passion and purpose, I look forward to telling the incredible stories of our athletes and sport to amplify the paddling community.”

In her recent role as Digital Communications Manager at Alpine Ontario Alpin, Emmalee developed a robust digital marketing strategy that resulted in significant growth and engagement for the organization and their partner profiles. In her previous role at the Canadian Olympic Foundation, Emmalee managed all donor marketing and communications, fostering new profitable relationships that helped carry Team Canada through two Olympic Games, including the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Emmalee was also a key player in launching multiple marketing campaigns at the Foundation including ‘5to8’, the largest digital fundraising campaign the Foundation has ever launched with media coverage worldwide.

“Emmalee brings the perfect balance of passion and experience to this role,” said Colleen Coderre, CKC’s Communications Lead. “She is highly skilled, highly motivated and brings a wonderful energy and attitude to the table. I am really looking forward to working with Emmalee to elevate our communications strategy.”

We welcome Emmalee to the team as she officially starts in her new role on April 4, 2022. We also look forward to welcoming Jessica to the team on April 19, 2022.

Ottawa, ON (March 1, 2022) – Canoe Kayak Canada and the Canoe ’22 Society, hosts of the 2022 ICF Canoe Sprint & Paracanoe World Championships, supports the decision of the International Canoe Federation (ICF) to suspend all Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials.

We join our partners at the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee in strongly condemning the war of aggression against the sovereign state of Ukraine by the Russian government, currently being supported by the Belarusian Government.

We add our voice to calls for peace and the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine. Our thoughts are with the Ukrainian people as well as with the communities of athletes, coaches, and staff who may have friends or family affected by these horrific events.

ICF Release – March 1, 2022

Canoe Kayak Canada is looking for two volunteers to join the Slalom High Performance Committee as members at large, which are voting members of the committee. The Whitewater Council recently updated the committee’s Terms of Reference (ToR) and added a 6^th voting member to the committee. The revised ToR also indicate that the committee, to the extent possible, will ensure regional and gender representation within its composition. Additionally, the committee encourages individuals from underrepresented communities to respond to this call.

The Slalom HPC will meet at least twice per year via telephone or video conference. The main role of the Committee is to provide technical direction to the Slalom discipline and High Performance Programs and as such it operates with a relatively high degree of autonomy on technical matters specific to the Slalom discipline.

At a minimum, all candidates must meet the following criteria:

• Be 18 years of age or older
• Be a current member in good standing of Canoe Kayak Canada

In addition, ideal candidates will have:

• Extensive knowledge of whitewater high performance programs and the Canadian sport system as it relates to the discipline
• Experience working on volunteer committees
• Excellent communication and leadership skills
• The ability to work in both official languages is an asset.

Please send completed application forms and a resumé outlining relevant skills and qualifications to James Cartwright by email at jcartwright@canoekayak.ca before March 7, 2022

Canadian athletes between the ages of 14 and 25 have the chance to be scouted by nine Team Canada sports for free, including Canoe Kayak Canada

TORONTO, January 25, 2022 — RBC Training Ground struck gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games when alumni Avalon Wasteneys and Kelsey Mitchell became Olympic champions. Now, as program graduates prepare to make their debut at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Games, RBC Training Ground resumes its search for the next generation of Olympic talent.

RBC Training Ground is a nation-wide talent identification program dedicated to finding and funding Canada’s future Olympians. Canoe Kayak Canada –  one of nine participating National Sport Organizations – has partnered with RBC Training Ground since its inception.

“RBC Training Ground is a gamechanger and a real life example of how a Team Canada partner can change the fate of young Canadian athletes,” said David Shoemaker, Chief Executive Officer and Secretary General, Canadian Olympic Committee. This amazing program quite literally makes Olympic dreams a reality. We are delighted to see the program returning for its seventh year and excited about the prospects of RBC Training Ground graduates competing at Beijing 2022 in just a few weeks. We know how Team Canada inspires Canadians to Be Olympic, and we strongly encourage young Canadians to take advantage of this free opportunity to kickstart their campaigns for Paris 2024, Milano Cortina 2026 and beyond, so they can then inspire the next generation of champions.”

Year seven of the program, beginning this Spring, features a planned return to free in-person qualifying events across the country (guided by local health and safety protocols) in addition to virtual testing options.

At each qualifying event participants will perform speed, strength, power, and endurance benchmark testing in front of the participating National Sport Organizations. Athletes deemed to have high performance potential are invited to complete further sport-specific testing. The top athletes will be selected as RBC Future Olympians and receive funding, mentorship, and other resources to pursue their Olympic dreams.

“RBC Training Ground is designed to help identify and support the next generation of Olympic talent, and provide athletes with the high-performance sport resources needed to achieve their podium dreams,” said Evan MacInnis, Technical Director for RBC Training Ground. “While some participants are looking to re-energize or boost an Olympic dream in a sport they are already pursuing, others participate with the hope of being discovered and directed toward an Olympic sport they may have never considered. But they all rely on raw athleticism and determination to attract the attention of our sport partners and are excited to see where this program can take them.”

RBC Training Ground alumni competing at Beijing 2022 include World Cup gold medallist Marion Thénault (Freestyle Skiing – Aerials), Miha Fontaine (Freestyle Skiing – Aerials) Mike Evelyn (Bobsleigh), Ryan Sommer (Bobsleigh) and Sara Villani (Bobsleigh).

Registration and event information for all local RBC Training Ground events is available at RBCTrainingGround.ca.

Since its inception in 2016, the program has tested 10,000 athletes across Canada, with over 1,300 athletes being identified by National Sport Organizations as having Olympic potential (many in a sport they had never considered).

National Sport Organization program partners in 2022 include: Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton; Canoe Kayak Canada; Cycling Canada Cyclisme; Freestyle Ski Canada, Luge Canada; Rowing Canada Aviron, Rugby Canada; Speed Skating Canada; and Volleyball Canada – all looking to identify new talent for development.

RBC Training Ground was developed in partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee and Canadian Olympic Foundation, with support from the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network. As the longest standing corporate partner of Team Canada, RBC is proud to celebrate its 75^th year proudly championing the Olympic Movement.

It is with profound sadness that Canoe Kayak Canada recognizes the passing of Bill McKee on December 21st at the age of 84. Bill was a long time National and International Official, volunteer and leader within the Quebec Division of the Sprint Discipline for more than 40 years.

Bill began his life in the sport as a paddler at the Grand Trunk Canoe Club. After his paddling years, he became a director of the Chateauguay Canoe Club and then an official with his long-time friends Peter McCabe and Robin Walsh.

Bill was a certified level 5 official, and was a regular appointee to international events, officiating at the 1976 Olympic Games and 15 ICF World Championships. At home at Canadian events he was a fixture of the sport officiating at Nationals and many divisional regattas every year. Bill was the Quebec Division flag officer for more than 30 years, and was extremely knowledgeable about the Quebec Division and its history. Much of the development and modernization of the sport in Quebec can be linked to his tenure, and his dedication to the sport of Canoe Kayak was profound.

He remained aware of athlete results and was a supporter of up-and-coming and high level athletes. Bill was also an advocate of women’s canoe in our sport. Most of all he always shared a love for the sport, and every year at Nationals he was happy to watch all of the close races and performances of the athletes on the water.

Bill was the honoured recipient of the R. Edgar Gilbert Award for his contribution to officiating in 1986. The Quebec Division also donated a National Championships trophy named in his honour, which Bill presented to the winner of the Senior Women’s C1 200m for the first time in 2018.

Canoe Kayak Canada wishes to express our condolences to Bill’s wife Frances, his family and all of his friends and colleagues in the canoeing community. We also are compelled to thank Bill, and his family for his lifetime of contribution to the sport of canoeing.

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the recognized authority by the International Canoe Federation on all aspects of paddling in Canada including the Olympic disciplines of sprint and slalom, and the Paralympic discipline of Paracanoe. Our vision is to be a Canadian sport for families, communities and champions.

 
JOIN OUR TEAM:

Project Manager, National Program Development and Events

Application deadline: January 14, 2022

Communications Coordinator

Application deadline: January 14, 2022
 
If you possess the passion and qualifications for this position, please submit your resume along with a covering letter clearly outlining why you believe you are a good fit for our organization. Only those selected for interviews will be contacted. Apply to cwade@canoekayak.ca

OTTAWA – Canoe Kayak Canada is pleased to announce the 2021 recipients of the Club Development Award and Coach Developer Award and to congratulate all 14 coaches who have been nominated for these Awards. The winner of each award was announced during the 2021 CKC Annual Summit.

“Every day, coaches and club leaders across Canada go to great lengths to make an impact in the lives of our athletes and our sport system,” said James Cartwright, Senior Manager of High Performance and Coach Development. “We’re proud to recognize these eight nominees. Taking time to formally recognize the accomplishments of our great coaches goes a long way to say thank you and to recognize the impact these individuals have in within paddling community.

CKC Club Development Award

The Club Development Award is presented annually to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club.

Under Diane Tam’s leadership, False Creek Sprint Canoe Club (FCSCC) has become one of the top sprint canoe clubs in British Columbia. At the 2021 National Championships 3 FCSCC athletes placed on the podium and 6 athletes raced in the Finals. Additionally, the club has grown significantly at the U10, U12, U14 and U16 level with approximately 80 paddlers now participating in the program. In 2013, FCSCC had no athletes compete at the National Championships and in 2021 there were 21 athletes that represented FCSCC.

“Through her dedication, coaching style, enthusiasm and professionalism, Diane has created a thriving club. Beyond FCSCC, Diane has been instrumental in the organization and development of the sport in British Columbia. She is always willing to help athletes and clubs.”

CKC Coach Developer Award

The Coach Developer Award is presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties.

Cheyanne Farquharson led the Rideau Canoe Club to the National Sprint Championship for the third consecutive year. Her leadership, recruiting and mentorship of new female coaches was instrumental in creating a supportive and inclusive environment. Cheyanne was selected by CKC to coach at the Junior World Championships in Portugal. She has developed coaching training and safe sport resources that have been shared throughout the sport.

“Taking on the head coaching position at a large club brings with it a great number of challenges at the best of times, over the past 18 months of the Covid-19 pandemic countless more were imposed. Cheyanne impressed Ottawa Public Health with our protocols that we were identified as a model for other organizations.”

2021 Coach Excellence Nominees:

Coach Developer Award

 Club Development Award

Read more: http://canoekayak.wpengine.com/ckc-excellence-awards/

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is proud to welcome KC Dalton (nee Fraser) to our staff team as an Assistant Coach working in the Atlantic Centre.

KC Dalton previously led high performance programming at the South Niagara Canoe Club as the Head Coach. As a Sprint National Team alumna, Dalton is a Pan American Games champion in K4 500m in 2015, and a member of the 2016 Rio Olympic Team.

In this coaching role, KC will work with all disciplines at the Atlantic Sport Centre to continue elevating it to a world class training environment.  KC will collaborate closely with CKC coaches, Chad Brooks and Andreas Dittmer in Halifax, as well as the broader high performance team at the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic.

“After a great experience working at the club level I’m excited for this new opportunity to work with the top athletes in Canada and share my knowledge,” added Dalton.

KC will be a key leader within our CKC Sprint coaching staff and a critical piece of ensuring a world-class centre environment year round in Halifax, while also coaching a various international competitions and camps through out the year.

“KC’s high level of technical knowledge, experience in the sport, coaching education and her positive and performance focused mindset will be a true asset to our CKC community and all the athletes,” said CKC Chief Technical Officer, Ian Mortimer. “We look forward to her joining the team in January.”

This position was made possible through the collaboration of the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic, and we thank them for their ongoing partnership and collaboration.

Canoe Kayak Canada has officially launched the nomination process for the 2021 Excellence Awards.

The Club Development Award, the Coach Developer Award and Coach Recognition Awards are presented on an annual basis to coaches and club leaders who have made significant efforts or achievements in their communities.

The Club Development Award will be presented to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club. The Coach Developer Award will be presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties.

The awards are presented yearly at Canoe Kayak Canada’s Annual Summit. The Summit will take place this year virtually on November 19-21, 2021.

Click here to submit nominations.

Deadline is November 7, 2021.

For more information, contact James Cartwright.

October 22, 2021 – The Slalom High Performance Committee and Sprint High Performance Committee have approved the nominations for the 2021-2022 Sport Canada Athlete Assistance Program (AAP). Athletes who qualify for the program will receive funding from Sport Canada for training and living expenses. Below is the list of AAP funding recipients in Canoe Slalom, Canoe Sprint and the Para Canoe program.

Please note that CKC does not view AAP nomination as the determinize indicator of athlete status within our team. It is a key element of financial support, however, on-water results in training and competition, as well as other key indicators both physically and as a contributing teammate are the key elements used to evaluate our athletes.

Canoe Slalom

Canoe Sprint

Paracanoe

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is thrilled to announce the return of world-class coach Andreas Dittmer to lead Canada’s canoe sprint program towards Paris 2024 and beyond.

Dittmer coached the Canadian men’s sprint canoe team for over two years before returning to his home country to coach the German men’s canoe team in fall 2020.

During his career as an athlete, Dittmer dominated sprint canoeing by winning five medals at the Olympic Games, including gold in C-2 1000m, C-1 1000m and C-1 500m, and accomplishment unmatched in the history of the sport. He is also an 8-time World Champion and won a total of 22 medals at the World Championship between 1991 and 2004.

In his previous role as Men’s Canoe coach in Canada Dittmer led the team to a successful qualification for the Olympic Games in C-2 1000m, including the setting of a Canadian record in the C-2 1000m at the World Championships in 2019. During his stint with the German team during the 2021 season, Dittmer coached athletes to a Bronze Medal in Tokyo in Men’s C-2 1000m, as well and Senior World Championships Titles in C-1 1000m.

“We are very excited to have Andreas rejoin our program in this new role leading the Canoe program. He is a leader whose experience and impactful coaching helps our entire team elevate their training, while bringing a love and passion for the sport that is equally inspiring,” said Ian Mortimer, Canoe Kayak Canada Chief Technical Officer.

Dittmer is looking forward to returning to Canada saying, “I’m very grateful to be able to continue this great job for the canoe and kayak family in Canada and I’m really looking forward to working with motivated athletes who will join us on the pathway to the Paris Olympic Games in 2024. I’m also excited to be working with very professional coaches and staff and I’m especially looking forward to coming back home.”

While Dittmer will contibute to program training for our athletes in the Fall, he will officially join the team on January 1, 2022 and work closely with CKC Head Coach Anders Gustafsson and the entire canoe kayak sprint coaching team in the lead up to Paris 2024.

Call for Candidates

Domestic Development Committee – Athlete Representative

and

National Sprint Officials Committee – Athlete Representative

Canoe Kayak Canada is looking for two individuals to join two committees in the organization as Athlete Representatives:

1. one individual to join the organization’s Sprint Domestic Development Committee (DDC) as the Athlete Representative, and
2. one individual to join the organization’s National Sprint Officials Committee (NOC) as the Athlete Representative.

These positions are instrumental in providing an athlete’s perspective to the discussions and decision-making of the organization.

Interested candidates are required to complete the attached form in order to be considered for the position.

Please send applications to Chair of the CKC Athlete Committee, care of Ben Russell by email to benruss@gmail.com  by October 27^th, 2021.  The Athletes Committee will be responsible for the final selection of the candidates.

Call for Candidates – Sprint Racing Discipline, Sprint Racing Council Chair/Commodore, Domestic Development Committee Chair, and High Performance Committee Chair

Canoe Kayak Canada is looking for three individuals to join three committees in the organization:

1. one individual to join the Sprint Racing Council and fill the role of Chair/Commodore of the Council,
2. one individual to join the Sprint Racing Council and fill the role of Chair of the Domestic Development Committee, and,
3. one individual to join the Sprint Racing Council and fill the role of Chair of the High-Performance Committee.

These positions are instrumental in providing leadership to the discussions and decision-making of the organization.

Interested candidates are required to complete the form in order to be considered for the position.

Dear CKC Members,

We would like to take a moment to recognize this first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This Day honours the lost children and Survivors of the residential Schools, their families and communities.

In 2021 Canoe Kayak Canada and working with it’s Indigenous Advisory Council developed the : Starting the Conversation: Paddling, Indigenous Peoples, and Reconciliation, resources to encourage our membership to  engage in conversations around paddling, Indigenous Peoples, and reconciliation in our sport.

Today we encourage all our members to take action by Starting the Conversation in their own communities. For those who do use the Starting Conversation resource and complete the activities, we would further encourage you to send what you have learned and the outcome of your conversations in to us at CKC so that we can post them on the CKC website to be shared for all to learn from. The conversations, and sharing this education is an initial step forward on the long path of reconciliation.

We would like to sincerely thank our Indigenous Advisory Council for their time and council.

For more information or questions: please contact Tyler Lawlor tlawlor@canoekayak.ca

CKC: Starting the Conversation: Paddling , Indigenous Peoples, and Reconciliation.

Document can be found here.

For more information please visit:

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Truth and Reconciliation Sport:

Sport

Truth and Reconciliation Commission

Truth and Reconciliation Commission

OTTAWA, ON (September 29, 2021) — Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) announces the retirement of Chief Technical Officer (CTO), Graham Barton following five years with the organization after returning from Own The Podium. Ian Mortimer will be assuming the role of CTO in leading the technical side of the organization effective October 1, 2021.

“As a coach, High Performance Director, High Performance Advisor and more recently as Chief Technical Officer, I have had the pleasure of meeting and working with some amazing people,” said Barton. “I want to thank those who motivated me, those that mentored me and those who supported me. None of our success could have been possible without a great team behind the team and I want to thank all the people I have worked with over the years who through their support and hard work made Canoe Kayak Canada one of the leading organizations in Canadian sport.  It is hard to say goodbye after dedicating your life to sport.  I will miss it, but I leave with the comforting knowledge that our athletes and our system are in good hands with the new leadership team.  I wish them and all our athletes all the best as they prepare for Paris 2024 and beyond.”

With over 40 years of experience in the sport system, Barton led multiple Canadian paddling teams to international success, including the most recent Tokyo 2020 podium finishers in women’s canoe, Katie Vincent and Laurence Vincent Lapointe, and four world champions at the Senior/U23/Junior World Championships.

Barton built his legacy on the foundation that excellence is a process and a collaborative effort amongst many partners.

“We send Graham off with mixed emotions as he has done such a tremendous job re-setting and restabilizing the organization’s high performance program,” said Casey Wade, CKC’s Chief Executive Officer. “Graham left CKC in 2009 as a very talented High Performance Director and returned as a truly exceptional CTO.”

Ian Mortimer will take over from Graham Barton as of October 1, 2021. Ian, a former national team canoer, has been part of CKC’s leadership team since 2014 leading and driving the development side of the organization.

“It’s truly an honour to continue to work with our entire Canoe Kayak Canada community to build not just world class performances, but a community where all feel welcome and both paddlers young and old can work towards their goals and enjoy our sport,” said Mortimer. “The response to the COVID-19 pandemic within our community, and the resilience of our national team paddlers has been exemplary through these exceedingly tough times. It has underscored for me how special of a sport we have. By working together, our potential is sky high and I am excited for the challenge ahead and seeing our athletes break through to the very highest levels of our sport and reaching the World Championship, Olympic and Paralympic podium.”

“Ian has proven to be an emerging leader both within CKC and the Canadian sport system. He has remarkable leadership and communication skills that will be critical in empowering our team to be among the best in the world,” said Wade. “I have no doubt that Ian will continue to build a culture of excellence that is supportive of people performing at their best.”

As the Chief Technical Officer, Mortimer will head Canoe Kayak Canada’s High-Performance strategy and National Team Programs in collaboration with coaches, athletes, officials, clubs and funding partners. He will lead the strategic long-term technical plan to ensure sustainable success across the system, including our Team Red development program.

Mortimer will work as part of the senior management leadership team, including a close partnership with Head Coach, Anders Gustafsson, and our world class coaching team. It is critical that this team works to ensure success throughout the system, stemming from the grassroots and club level, and progressing to the highest levels of competition.

The CKC Board of Directors and staff wish Graham Barton the very best in his retirement and congratulate Ian Mortimer on his new role.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada. Canoe Kayak Canada has been one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 26 Olympic medals. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization which includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

OTTAWA, ON (September 28, 2021) — Canoe Kayak Canada Marathon team is racing at the 2021 ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships this week in Bascov, Romania.

The Canadian team will compete from September 30 – October 3, led by Team Leader and CKC President, Chris Helyar.

The World Marathon Championships is a lap-format race with the start, finish and portage in the same area.

Canadian athletes will take part in the short distance events on September 30 (approximately 9km) in the C1 and K1 classes. There is a set of heats with the qualifying boats going to the finals. There are three laps for all competitors.

Athletes will also compete in the long distance events from October 1-3 (approx. 13 km to 28km). The number of laps ranges from 4-8 depending on the race category. The senior athletes are expected to complete the distance in a time of approximately two hours fifteen minutes.

Meet the Canadian team:

K1 Men – Andrii Kkainatskyi
Andrii paddles for the Viking Canoe Club (Morin-Heights), lives in Montreal, Quebec. Andrii was born in Ukraine, where he started to paddle in a kayak at the age of 11 years old. At the junior age (1999-2004), he became the champion of the various national championships in sprint and marathon kayak races. Later, with the Ukrainian National Dragon boat team and Canadian Dragon boat team.

C1 Men – Bret Himmelman
Bret paddles for Maskwa Aquatic Club in Halifax, Nova Scotia and is on the Canadian National Sprint Team. Bret has previously raced internationally for Team Canada at World Cups and CANAM MEX. Bret will be racing at his first World Marathon Championships this year.

C1 Women – Marlee MacIntosh.
Marlee paddles for Maskwa Aquatic Club in Halifax, NS. Marlee participated in the 2018 ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships, winning gold in the Jr Women’s C1 event. She has also represented Canada six times internationally for sprint canoe and has won numerous medals at the national championship level.

Congratulations to the Canadian Masters athletes who competed at the 2021 ICF Canoe Marathon Masters World Championships on September 27-28. Canada had 3 entries and four medals at this event.

C1 Men – 65-69 – Chris Helyar – GOLD
K1 Women – 55-59 – Edit Fried – BRONZE
K2 Women – 35+ – Edit Fried/Larisa Antonova (Russia) – GOLD
K2 Mixed – 55-59 – Edit Fried/Alain Buliard – SILVER
K1 Men – 55-59 – Alain Bulaird – 10^th place

For more information on the event click here.

Katie Vincent wins gold in the C1 200m at the 2021 Senior World Championships. Vincent had never won a senior world championship medal in the women’s C1 200m before Sunday, having watched teammate and C2 partner Laurence Vincent-Lapointe take six of the past eight titles.

Vincent broke through on Sunday, out-sprinting Spain’s Antia Jacome and Poland’s Dorota Borowska.

“All this hard work for the past few years to get to this point, and now I’m looking forward to the future,” Vincent said.

“I really feel like this is the beginning, there is a long road to go for me. I’m really looking forward to worlds next year at home, to be the reigning world champion added into a home world championships will be super exciting.

“I have ups and downs since Tokyo, there were a lot of emotions and things to process, and there still is. It kept me going and I reconnected with my love for this sport.”

Excerpt from International Canoe Federation
Photo: Bence Vekassy

MONTEMOR-O-VELHO, (September 7, 2021) – Team Canada returned to Junior/U23 international competition this weekend earning three World titles and a total of nine medals at the ICF World Championships.

Sophia Jensen (Cascades Canoe Club) led the medal haul for Canada, earning two gold medals, a silver and a bronze medal in women’s and mixed canoe events.

Jensen trained with Tokyo Olympic medalists, Laurence Vincent Lapointe and Katie Vincent in the lead up to Tokyo, reinforcing the strength and depth of the Canadian women’s canoe program leading into Paris 2024 and beyond.

“It felt absolutely amazing,” said Jensen. “It was an honour to race with such a strong group of athletes and it was also super fun! I can’t wait to keep training hard and seeing what next year has to offer!”

Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Aquatic Club) was also crowned World Champion in the U23 C1 500m event. That result tops his silver medal performance in the C1 1000m event from the previous day.

“Being back in the boat and racing post-Tokyo was so amazing,” explains Fitzpatrick. “We had an amazing team and I was very happy to be able to put down some good races that earned me a spot on the podium. To win my first world title this weekend was a feeling like no other. The biggest thing for me was my parents and home club coach were able to be here with me this weekend and enjoy the moment as well.”

“I was very proud of this team both on and off the water,” said CKC’s Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “It has been a tough 18 months and we had little opportunity to prepare due to a late selection event.  The nine medals demonstrates potential for the Paris and Los Angeles Olympic Games but there were also many close 4th and 5^th place finishes. The team was supported by club coaches many of whom were at their first international competition and they did an amazing job along with the many coaches at home contributed to this best ever Junior and Under 23 World Championship performance.”

Team Canada stood on the podium in the following events:

Gold – Sophia Jensen – C1 200m (U23)

Gold – Sophia Jensen & Alix Plomteux – C2 Mixed 500m (U23)

Gold – Connor Fitzpatrick – C1 500m (U23)

Silver – Connor Fitzpatrick – C1 1000m (U23)

Silver – Sophia Jensen, Anna Cyr, Sloan Mackenzie & Anne Parent – C4 500m (U23)

Bronze – Sophia Jensen & Anna Cyr – C2 500m (U23)

Bronze – Ella Hodgson-Pageau – C1 200m (Jr)

Bronze – Toshka Besharah – K1 200m (Jr)

Bronze – Ian Gaudet – K1 500m (Jr)

Team Canada Entries:

U23

Junior

Results:

https://timetable.canoesprintportugal.com/

Monday August 30, 2021 (Ottawa, ON) – Canada’s Para canoe team is ready for Paralympic action this week at the Sea Forest Waterway in Tokyo, Japan. Three athletes will make their Paralympic debuts including Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa, ON), Andrea Nelson (Markham, ON), and Mathieu St-Pierre (Shawinigan, QC).

Here is everything you need to know to cheer on the three athletes representing Canada on the world’s biggest stage.

MEET THE TEAM IN TOKYO

Schedule and Results

Para canoe competition in Tokyo will take place September 2-4 (Japan time).
September 1-3 (Canadian time – evenings).

Canadian paddlers will be on the start line with heats beginning at 20:30 on Wednesday, September 1^st.

The full Paralympic schedule and results can be found on the Canadian Paralympic Committee website or International Canoe Federation.

Broadcasting and Streaming

Livestream and on-demand broadcasts of each event can be found on Paralympic.ca/Tokyo-2020/live-stream-video-demand, cbc.ca/tokyo2020 and Radio-Canada.ca/jeux-paralympiques, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, the free CBC Gem streaming service, and the Radio-Canada Sports app.

Media Resources

Athlete bios, flash quotes, photos, and video highlights, are available at Paralympic.ca/tokyo-2020-media.

About Para Canoe

Para canoe is a new sport within the Paralympic program, making its debut five years ago at the Rio 2016 Games. The program has been expanded for Tokyo to include both kayak and va’a boats and additional athlete slots. Canada is looking for its first Paralympic medal in the sport.

TOKYO 2020 PARALYMPIC GAMES PARA CANOE TEAM: 

Brianna Hennessy – Ottawa, ON

Andrea Nelson – Markham, ON

Mathieu St-Pierre – Shawinigan, QC

MEDIA CONTACT:

Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
Canoe Kayak Canada
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca or 613-530-6217

OTTAWA, ONTARIO (August 29, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce the 2021 Sprint World Championship teams – Senior, Para, Under 23, Junior and Olympic Hopes.

Following a week of exciting racing at the 2021 Sprint National Championships at the Rideau Canoe Club, athletes were selected based on their performances in their respective events throughout the week.

The Senior World Championship team and Para team will compete in Copenhagen, Denmark from September 15-19 with several Tokyo 2020 Olympians returning to competition, including women’s C2 bronze medallist, Katie Vincent.

The U23 and Junior World Championship team will be flying out to Montemor-o-Velho, Portugal for their start of their event from September 3-6^th. Five U23 athletes will also be competing at the Senior World Championships one week later.

The Olympic Hopes Regatta will take place in Racice, Czech Republic from September 10-12^th, 2021.

“It was very exciting to see so many talented paddlers back in action here in Canada following such a long hiatus,” said Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “It will be great to return to international competition with many of our Tokyo Olympians and future 2024 and 2028 Olympic hopefuls in action. We are confident our COVID safeguards, combined with the host organizing committee protocols, will offer a safe environment for all of our travelling teams.”

For more information on the upcoming ICF events, click here.

2021 SENIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM

Para Canoe

U23

Junior

2021 Olympic Hopes Team 

                                               Men’s Canoe

                                                Women’s Canoe 

                                               Women’s Kayak

                                                  Men’s Kayak 

Visit Canoe Kayak Canada’s website to get more information and make sure to follow @PlanetCanoe and @CanoeKayakCAN for more live updates.

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

OTTAWA (August 26, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce the eight slalom athletes that have been selected to compete in the 2021 International Canoe Federation (ICF) World Cups and World Championships.

The athletes qualified at Ottawa River Runners Tailrace on August 21-22 and will compete in three international events this fall. World Cup 3 in Seu d’Urgell, Spain, World Cup 4 in Pau, France and the world championships in Bratislava, Slovakia. Junior athletes Sophie Gilfilan and Beatrice Olson will not be competing at these events due to conflicting commitments with their academic schedules.

“We are excited to be sending a young group of racers to Europe to support their development and to gain critical race experience as we shift our eyes towards Paris,” said CKC Senior High Performance Manager, James Cartwright. “All three competition venues are mainstays on the international circuit and with limited racing in the last 18 months it’s important for our athletes to get some more races in this year before the competition season ends.”

Selections for World Cups 3, 4 and World Championships

2021 ICF Slalom World Cup 3

When: September 3-5, 2021

Where: La Seu, Spain

How to Follow: Event website

2021 ICF Slalom World Cup 4

When: September 10-12, 2021

Where: Pau, France

How to Follow: Event website

2021 World Championships

When: September 22-26, 2021

Where: Bratislava, Slovakia

How to Follow: Event website

Visit Canoe Kayak Canada’s website to get more information and make sure to follow @PlanetCanoe and @CanoeKayakCAN for more live updates.

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information :

Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Terry Orlick, professor of Sport and Performance Psychology at the University of Ottawa, renowned Mental Performance Coach, author and long-time member of the support team for CKC National Team athletes.

Terry was a noted leader in the development of the field of Sport and Performance Psychology and generations of CKC athletes benefited from his teaching and guidance to support them in their pursuit of excellence, while also encouraging them to maintain and nurture a love of the sport and a joy in daily experience as a team and community. Notably, Terry was part of the CKC Olympic Teams in this support role for the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games.

“Terry was a one in a million guy. He shared the ‘simple joys’, as he would fondly say,” said LA Schmidt, CKC Commodore Sprint. “Thank you Terry for teaching us all how to excel at living.”

Beyond his professional connection with our CKC community, Terry was a paddling dad, father to Jewelia and Skye Orlick, both paddlers at the Cascades Canoe Club in Chelsea, Quebec. CKC offers its deepest sympathies to the Orlick family and all the friends and loved ones mourning at this time.

Obituary

“The heart of human excellence often begins to beat when you discover a pursuit that absorbs you, frees you, challenges you, or gives you a sense of meaning, joy, or passion.”

Terry Orlick, “In Pursuit of Excellence – 5th Edition”

TOKYO, JAPAN (Saturday August 7, 2021) – Laurence Vincent Lapointe has won her second medal of Tokyo 2020, teaming with Katie Vincent to win bronze in the women’s canoe sprint C-2 500m event.

At the midway mark of the race, they were in fifth place. But they kept powering and moved themselves past Germany and Hungary to get into third place. They finished in 1:59.041, three and a half seconds behind China, who led from start to finish, and about a second and a half behind Ukraine, who won silver.

After they crossed the line, Vincent grabbed Vincent Lapointe’s shoulder in excitement, which caused them both to fall into the water with laughter.

The Canadians didn’t take the easiest route to the podium. After finishing third in their first round heat, they had to race in a quarterfinal instead of advancing directly to the semifinal. They were able to win their quarterfinal heat pretty handily, however, to move onto the next round. In the semifinal that took place just a couple of hours before the final, they finished second.

The duo came to Tokyo as the holders of the world best time in the event, which they broke twice in 2018, as well as being two-time world champions in 2017 and 2018.

Both were finalists in the C-1 200m event two days ago when Vincent Lapointe claimed silver to stand on the first ever women’s sprint canoe podium at the Olympic Games. She first teamed up with Vincent in the C-2 boat in 2015, kicking off their successful partnership. But before these Games, they hadn’t raced together internationally since a World Cup in early June 2019.

The medal was Canada’s 23rd of Tokyo 2020, surpassing the total of 22 from Atlanta 1996 and Rio 2016. The only Olympic Summer Games at which Canada won more medals was Los Angeles 1984, which was boycotted by the Soviet Union and 13 other countries.

Excerpt by Canadian Olympic Committee

Ottawa, August 6, 2021 – Canada’s Para canoe team for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games will see three athletes make their first Paralympic appearances, as the Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) and Canoe Kayak Canada announced today the selection of Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa, ON), Andrea Nelson (Markham, ON), and Mathieu St-Pierre (Shawinigan, QC).

Hennessy started Para canoe only last year, and has made an impact right away. She earned her Tokyo spot thanks to her performance at the World Cup event in Hungary in May, finishing fourth in the women’s VL2 category race. It was Hennessy’s first international competition.

“I’m so honoured to be part of the Tokyo Paralympic Games team, and to push beyond my limits, to fight for excellence, to represent Canada on the world stage, to compete with the best of the best, and above all, to inspire others with disabilities,” said Hennessy.

Nelson qualified a place for Canada with a fifth-place finish in the KL2 race at the 2019 world championships before securing her spot in the boat at the Canoe Kayak Canada Olympic and Paralympic Trials earlier this year. She entered the Para canoe world for the first time in 2017 after discovering the sport at the Canadian Paralympic Committee’s Paralympian Search event in Toronto.

“I’m extremely proud of how far I’ve come,” said Nelson. “I’m very excited to be a part of the 2020 Paralympic Games.”

St-Pierre also secured his place on the Tokyo team with his result at the recent World Cup in Hungary in May, a fifth–placefinish in the men’s VL2 race. A member of the national team since 2017, St-Pierre has two world championship appearances to his name, finishing seventh in 2018 and 11th in 2019 in the men’s VL2 200m.

Para canoe competition in Tokyo will take place September 2-4.

“I am very proud of the team we have going to Tokyo and know they have prepared for performance,” said Para Head Coach Marc Creamer. “We have a mix of international experience however this will be the first Paralympic Games for everyone. The support from their teammates and home clubs will fuel the fire for their best performances as we compete on the biggest stage.”

Para canoe is a new sport within the Paralympic program, making its debut five years ago at the Rio 2016 Games. The program has been expanded for Tokyo to include both kayak and va’a boats and additional athlete slots. Canada is looking for its first Paralympic medal in the sport.

“Congratulations to Brianna, Andrea, and Mathieu on qualifying for their first Paralympic Games!” said Stephanie Dixon, chef de mission, Tokyo 2020 Canadian Paralympic Team. “This is a remarkable accomplishment, and I am so happy to welcome them to the team. Competing in the Paralympic Games for the first time is a dream come true for any athlete, and all of Canada will be behind them as they race in Tokyo.”

TOKYO 2020 PARALYMPIC GAMES PARA CANOE TEAM:  

Brianna Hennessy – Ottawa, ON

Andrea Nelson – Markham, ON

Mathieu St-Pierre – Shawinigan, QC

The postponed Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games will take place August 24 to September 5, 2021 in Japan. Canada is expecting to send a team of approximately 130 athletes, and audiences across the country will be able to follow all the action live through coverage from the Canadian Paralympic Media Consortium, including broadcast partners CBC/Radio-Canada, AMI, and Sportsnet, and digital partners Twitter, Facebook, and MXZN.  

CLICK HERE to see the complete list of athletes currently named to the Canadian Paralympic Team. The Canadian Paralympic Committee will announce the official full team heading to the Games later this month.

About the Canadian Paralympic Committee: Paralympic.ca

About Canoe Kayak Canada: CanoeKayak.ca

MEDIA CONTACTS

Nicole Watts
Manager, Public Relations
Canadian Paralympic Committee
nwatts@paralympic.ca or 613-462-2700

Colleen Coderre
Communications Lead
Canoe Kayak Canada
ccoderre@canoekayak.ca or 613-530-6217 (via WhatsApp)

TOKYO JAPAN (August 6, 2021) – Canada advances to three semifinals leading into the final day of Olympic sprint competition. Vying for a spot in the A finals, silver medalist Laurence Vincent Lapointe (Trois-Rivières Canoe-Kayak Club) Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club) will be racing in the women’s C2 semifinals.

Connor Fitzpatrick advances to semifinals with a gutsy comeback in the heats and gruelling quarterfinal in men’s C1 1000m race. Roland Varga was eliminated following a sixth place finish in the quarterfinal.

The men’s K4 500m crew will contest the semifinals with a 5^th place finish (1:24.979) in the quarterfinals today. Mark de Jonge attributes the their success in advancing the boat to the strong bond with his teammates Nicholas Matveev, Pierre-Luc Poulin and Simon McTavish. “We are all really close friends. Over the past few years we have gone through a lot together and we are happy to see that our hard work is paying off. We have a lot of trust in each other to get the job done and that is what we will do tomorrow.”

The Canadian women’s K4 500m team did not succeed in advancing to the semifinals, but will appear in the B Finals. “We are working so well together in the boat but there are 16 crews that are the best in the world so we came out here to perform our best,” said Andréanne Langlois. “It is disappointing but we are still proud of what we have done to get here.” The Canadian crew includes Alanna Bray-Lougheed, Andréanne Langlois, Madeline Schmidt, and Michelle Russell.

Tomorrow, we will mark the final day of the sprint competition with semifinals, A and B Finals. Best of luck to Team Canada!

Tune in live at CBC Olympics Live – schedule below.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

Friday August 6 EDT /Saturday August 7 JST

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

TOKYO JAPAN (Thursday August 5, 2021) – Laurence Vincent Lapointe paddles to a silver medal (46.786) in the historic C1 200m Olympic event behind gold medalist Nevin Harrison of USA (45.932).  Ukraine’s Luidmyla Luzan came across the line in bronze medal position (47.034). Canada’s Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club) finished eighth in the tight race in a time of 47.834.

Silver for Vincent Lapointe (Trois-Rivières Canoe-Kayak Club) marks the first medal for Canada in the women’s sprint program since Caroline Brunet won bronze in 2004.

“I’m super proud of what I did today. It is so relieving and exciting. After all that I have been through, I did it!” said Vincent Lapointe.  “The Olympic Games is the peak event. I didn’t get gold but I did the best performance I could and I pushed until the end!”

Teammate Katie Vincent raced in lane 7 in the finals today. “I am proud of Laurence and hope we can keep this momentum into the C2 event. The biggest challenge will be the wind and I think that’s what got me a bit today but there are no excuses and no regrets. I am going to stay focused and not let anything stop us from doing our best.”

Nick Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club) rounded out his K1 200m event finishing 6th in the B Final.

Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club) finished 7^th in the highly competitive K1 500m semifinals, and did not progress to the finals.

Brian Malfesi (Ridge Canoe and Kayak Club) and Vincent Jourdenais (Club de canoe-kayak de vitesse de Trois-Rivieres) battled hard once again in the B Final finishing 6^th in the MK 1000m event.

Tomorrow, we will tune into heats and quarterfinals for WC2 500m, MC1 1000m, WK4 500m, and MK4 500m.

Tune in live at CBC Olympics Live – schedule below.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

Thursday August 5/Friday August 6 JST

Friday August 6 EDT /Saturday August 7 JST

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

TOKYO, JAPAN (August 4, 2021) – It was a historic moment at the SeaForest Waterway with the first-ever women’s canoe sprint races taking place today at an Olympic Games. Canada’s Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club) and Laurence Vincent Lapointe (Trois-Rivières Canoe-Kayak Club) did not let this opportunity go to waste, winning both their heats to advance directly to semifinals.

“We are writing history in women’s canoe,” said Vincent Lapointe.  “In 2010, I was there for the first world championships for women’s canoe and I am just going to keep doing my best right up until the end of this event.”

Katie Vincent commenting in the media mixed zone that she was excited for more racing. “Having not raced since 2019, to come out and know that all the work is still paying off is relieving. I am really looking forward to tomorrow and to execute a little more in the coming races.”

Mark de Jonge (Maskwa Aquatic Club) and Nick Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club)

raced in the men’s K1 200m heats and quarterfinals, with only Matveev securing his advancement into the semifinals.

“I was a bit nervous as this is my first international race in this event and now that I’ve dusted off the cobwebs, I am excited to race in the semis and hopefully qualify for the finals tomorrow,” said Matveev.

Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club) earned her spot into the semifinals via the quarterfinals in the K1 500m.  “I was a little upset that that I didn’t make it directly through to semis directly from my heat but after speaking with my coach Chad and making the necessary adjustments I think it paid off in the quarterfinals.”

Brian Malfesi (Ridge Canoe and Kayak Club) and Vincent Jourdenais (Club de canoe-kayak de vitesse de Trois-Rivieres) battled hard in their quarterfinal race, missing out on A Finals by less than a second. Malfesi commented, “Every crew here is the best in the world and we know we are right in it and we will take that into the B Final and aim to win it.”

It’s a big day of semi-finals and finals so tune in live on CBC Olympics Live – schedule below.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

Wednesday August 4 EDT/Thursday August 5 JST

Thursday August 5/Friday August 6 JST

Friday August 6 EDT /Saturday August 7 JST

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

TOKYO, JAPAN (August 3, 2021) – Team Canada brought their own heat to the Sea Forest Waterway with two boats qualifying for A Finals today and two top ten finishes. Canada competed in WK1 200m A and B Final, and the A Final in the MC2 1000m.

Andréanne Langlois (Club de canoë-kayak de Trois-Rivières) qualified through to the A Final following a 3^rd place finish (39.952) in the WK1 200m semifinals. Andréanne crossed the finish line in 9^th overall (40.473) in her first-ever international A Final performance.

“It’s easy to say that I am most proud of my result but I am actually most proud of coming back and proving to myself that I am world-class kayaker,” said Langlois.  “It is really good for my heart and good for me head to show that I was able to make an A Final. It’s the first time in my life and I knew I could do it and today I did it and it was the best time to show it!”

Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club) raced in the WK1 200m B final tying for 4^th place with Serbia, finishing the event in 13^th overall. Michelle and Andréanne will race together in the WK4 500m on Friday.

Roland Varga (Richmond Hill Canoe Club) and Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Aquatic Club) raced in the C2 1000m laying down a powerful performance to qualify them into the A Final. The Canadian crew battled hard to earn a 6^th place finish overall and a new Canadian record with a time of 3:27.10.

“It’s bittersweet I would say. Making the A Final was our goal and we achieved that but you always want to be better,” said Varga.  “We haven’t had a C2 crew at the Olympics since 2008 and I hope we brought men’s canoe back home to Canada and I think we proved that we belong today.”

Fitzpatrick and Varga will return on Friday to compete in the men’s C1 1000m event.

“We have two days off now to refocus and take care of the body,” said Fitzpatrick. “I hope to surprise a lot of people in the next race. We are coming back.”

Racing continues with the start of MK1 200m, WC1 200m, WK1 500m and MK2 1000m heats and quarterfinals.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

 Tuesday August 3 EDT/ Wednesday Aug 4 JST

Wednesday August 4 EDT/Thursday August 5 JST

Thursday August 5/Friday August 6 JST

Friday August 6 EDT /Saturday August 7 JST

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

Photo Credit: COC/Leah Hennel

Team Canada kicked off racing at the steamy Sea Forest Waterway with heats and quarterfinals deciding who advances to the semifinals tomorrow, Japan time. Canada competed in WK1 200m, MC2 1000m, MK1 1000m and WK2 500m events.

Andréanne Langlois and Michelle Russell both advanced to their semifinals in the WK1 200m.

“My heat could have gone better but we haven’t raced in so long so you never know how you are going rank and it is obviously the Olympics so everyone is bringing their A game,” said Russell. “The quarterfinals offered an opportunity to improve and get a bit more race experience and take it from there.”

“My quarterfinal was more consistent throughout the whole race so I am really happy about this race,” said Langlois. “I love this distance, it is my favourite so it would be good to go out on a good note.”

Roland Varga and Connor Fitzpatrick raced in the C2 1000m today finishing 5^th in the heat, and 4^th in the quarterfinals to lock up a spot in the semifinals. The temperatures are soaring in Tokyo and a hot topic for performance here at the Olympic Games.

“I personally love the heat, and for both of us this year, the harder the conditions the better,” said Fitzpatrick.  “Our fitness is incredible and we are doing all the right things to cope with the heat. When you get out to the start line and in the gate, you don’t even think about it.”

“A week before in Montreal, we were training in a concrete jungle and we got the preparation we needed,” said Varga. “We are as prepared as possible.”

Simon McTavish raced the MK1 1000m in a very competitive field and did not advance to the semifinals yet looking ahead to the men’s K4 500m.

Alanna Bray-Lougheed and Madeline Schmidt did not advance to the WK2 500m semifinals and will regroup for the K4 500m event.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

Monday August 2

Tuesday August 3

Wednesday August 4

Thursday August 5

Friday August 6

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

The Canoe Sprint competition kicks off at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games for Team Canada’s athletes this evening at (8:30 pm EDT), 9:30am JST. The action continues through until Saturday August 7. Canadians will race in twelve events at the Sea Forest Waterway with heats, quarterfinals and semifinals drawing out the best paddlers in the world for the Olympic finals.

London 2012 bronze medallist, Mark de Jonge lines up for his third Olympic start in the men’s K-4 with teammates Nicholas Matveev, Pierre-Luc Poulin and Simon McTavish. Mark will also race in the Men’s K1 200m event with Nicholas Matveev.

Women’s canoe will make its Olympic debut in Tokyo, making the sprint program gender equal, with both men and women competing in four kayak events and two canoe events. Katie Vincent and Laurence Vincent Lapointe will be lining up in C1 and C2 events beginning on Tuesday August 3^rd.

Andréanne Langlois returns for her second Olympic Games and will be racing in the Women’s K1 200m heats tomorrow along with Michelle Russell.  Both Langlois and Russell will also race K4 500m with teammates Alanna Bray-Lougheed, and Madeline Schmidt.   Alanna and Madeline will line up in the Women’s K2 500m.   Rounding out the Women’s Kayak events, Michelle Russell will also race the K1 500m.

Roland Varga and Connor Fitzpatrick will take on the C2 1000m event starting today and both will race C1 1000m later in the week, while Brian Malfesi and Vincent Jourdenais will line up in the K2 1000m on Tuesday.

Frank Amyot secured Canada’s first ever Olympic medal in canoe sprint by placing first in the C1 1000m race during the 1936 Games in Berlin, Germany. Since the introduction of canoe sprint, Canada has earned 24 Olympic medals in canoe and kayak events. Tokyo 2020 marks the first Games in history to include women’s canoe.

More information on the canoe and kayak sprint events can be found on the Tokyo 2020 website here.

Race previews:

Sunday August 1

Monday August 2

Tuesday August 3

Wednesday August 4

Thursday August 5

Friday August 6

PDF Here.

Athlete List

Alternates: Lissa Bissonette, Courtney Stott

TOKYO, JAPAN (July 28, 2021) – Women’s canoe made its Olympic debut today along with the start of the men’s kayak heats at the Kasai Slalom Centre.

Haley Daniels (Calgary, AB) did not advance to the semifinals today but the significance of the historical day was not lost.

“I am so proud to be here. It was a huge fight to become an Olympic sport and I can’t believe that we are finally here. I wish that I had done better today and wish I was fighting for a medal but unfortunately I got a 50-second penalty which put me out of the running. I have had to fight for 12 years to get here so just being here is really special.”

Canadian teammate Michael Tayler (Ottawa, ON) also did not advance into the semifinals despite a valiant effort on the race course in Tokyo.

“It was a tough one out there for me today. I really gave it my all but I had a lot of challenges and injuries coming into this so I was really just happy to be on the start line today and did everything I could.”

The team will be returning home following an extended training block away from Canada. Congratulations to the entire team for their efforts in Tokyo.

“We originally set out to qualify a full roster of athletes for the Tokyo Games and we achieved that objective sending a full slalom team for first time since the Sydney 2000 Games,” added Senior High Performance Manager James Cartwright. “The journey to Tokyo was much longer and tougher than anyone ever imagined, and I am incredibly proud of the athletes and coaches for their commitment throughout the journey and for representing Canada with pride. They have been outside of Canada since February and have earned a well-deserved break before we turn our focus towards to the upcoming World Championships in Bratislava in September.”

For full results click here.

The Canadian entries are listed below.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

TOKYO, JAPAN (July 27, 2021) – Women’s kayak semifinals and finals competition were held today at the Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre.  Canada’s Florence Maheu (Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC) was the seventh paddler to maneuver the challenging Tokyo course in the semifinals.

The semifinal proved to challenge many of the racers with only 9 women realizing penalty free runs. Florence made some costly mistakes on the course that caused her to finish outside of the top 10 advancement cut-off for finals.

“I am pretty disappointed. I wasn’t able to do what I wanted to do with too many mistakes. Following my heats, I had a goal to make top 15. I wanted to execute all the moves and have a clean run and I wasn’t able to achieve that today.”

Reflecting on her semifinal run, Maheu added, “I was pretty nervous and they were not easy moves so I need to feel more confident in the future and be more consistent.”

Germany’s Ricarda Funk (GER)  captured the gold medal, silver for Spain’s Maialen(ESP), and bronze for Australia’s Jessica Fox(AUS).

Maheu will make the trip home back to Canada tomorrow following a long six-month European training and competition block in Europe.  “I am quite excited to get back to Canada as it has been a long time away from home.”

Canada will compete next in the women’s canoe (Haley Daniels) and men’s kayak (Michael Tayler) slalom heats tomorrow July 28 JST time.

For full results click here.

The Canadian entries are listed below.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada and the Rideau Canoe Club Host Organizing Committee are proud to hold the 2021 Canoe Kayak Canada Sprint National Championships.   “Nationals” will be one of the first national amateur sporting events to be held in Canada as we return to sport as part of Canada’s Covid Recovery.

For many in our paddling community across Canada, this will be a first opportunity to compete at a national level.  For others, Nationals has long served as a celebration of our sport, and a homecoming for friends from coast to coast.

The 2021 Nationals will look and feel a bit different, but we are committed to making the 2021 Event a truly fantastic experience – one that will reflect how far we’ve come in being able to hold a Championship in 2021.

Our returning Olympians, the combination of National Team Trials, and so many new and young athletes racing at Nationals will all guarantee an incredible week.

As a competing athlete, official, coach, parent, grandparent, volunteer or spectator, all of you will make a difference in how our event goes.

The following information should help to ensure your visit to Ottawa is a successful one!

Here’s what you need to know:

SPECTATORS AND VIEWING AREAS

Yes!  Spectators will be allowed at the 2021 CKC Sprint Nationals.   The primary viewing area will be located on the east side of Mooney’s Bay at the finish line.   The area will include a large covered spectator viewing tent for inclement weather.  In addition, there will be food services onsite and washroom facilities.  This will be the area closest to the action, and where medal presentations will be held for our athletes.

Please note that when in the Spectator area, spectators will be required to fill out the CKC App for tracking.  Social distancing guidelines will also be in place and it is expected, masks will be required when spectators are not eating or drinking.

Informally, there will also be a spectator area at the end of the race course.   It is important to note this small park area will have limited capacity.

For people familiar with previous National Championships or Regattas held at Mooney’s Bay, the Mooney’s Bay park area will be off limits to all spectators.  This area will serve as a restricted access area for athletes only.

For these reasons, no personal spectator tents will be permitted at either the official spectator area or unofficial park viewing area at the end of the course. 

The organizing committee will be providing a large covered area at the finish line for rain and shade.   For safety and viewing purposes, there is simply not room for additional tents.

Please also note the Rideau Canoe Club will be off limits for all spectators and athletes, and will be an officials and volunteer zone only.   Spectating will not be possible from the Rideau Canoe Club (west) side of the venue)

ACCOMMODATION

The Host Organizing Committee is working with HTG Sports for hotel group booking discounts:

Individuals can book hotel rooms at the following:

https://secure.htgsports.com/HRMS.nsf/HotelConfirmedInEvent?OpenForm&ParentUNID=A8CAB83BE076F29B852585AE004E6D57&lang=en

We would encourage group bookings for clubs, and organizations booking more than 10 rooms you can use the following link:
https://secure.htgsports.com/registration.nsf/BTSRP_EventAccess?OpenForm&eventid=A8CAB83BE076F29B852585AE004E6D57&lang=en

HTG is an event partner, and the HOC would appreciate your support in booking hotels.

PARKING AND ATHLETE TRANSPORTATION

There will be onsite paid parking at Mooney’s Bay for athletes and spectators.  The HOC has secured the parking area directly beside the spectator area and entrance to the Athlete Village.   This will be the location where all athletes must enter the property, and will provide all spectators with the easiest access to spectator areas.

This will be the only facility offering a single-fee full day parking pass, and in and out privileges.

For athlete “drop-off” at the venue, a “quick stop” process will be in place to ensure athletes can enter the site as quickly and efficiently as possible.

The location can be access from Hog’s Back Road, on the south side, just east of Hog’s Back Bridge and the Canal Driveway.   Watch for volunteers.

With morning and afternoon cohorts, this will be a busy spot.  Still, we will have large volunteer team in place to ensure our athletes and spectators can get in and out quickly and safely.   This will be the only entrance into the venue.

ATHLETES VILLAGE

To ensure the safety and security of our competitors, when in competition, all athletes will stay within the secure “Athletes Village”.  This is the grass area in Mooney’s Bay Park facing the race course.   Please note that only athletes racing in a morning or afternoon cohort will be permitted access to the club areas of the athlete village.

Please note, to accommodate practice time for athletes not competing in National Team Trials on August 23, 24 and 25, there will be restricted access permitted to allow practicing athletes to grab their boat, and enter the water at the south end of the facility.  This will be done on a club by club basis in reserved time slots and coordinated through club coaches.

FOOD AND WATER FOR ATHLETES AND SPECTATORS

While there will be some food services available in the Spectator area, please note there will no food services and limited water access in the Athletes Village. 

Given Covid restrictions, shared water access via fountains and refill stations is not permitted.

While athletes will only be permitted to be in the Village area for a morning or afternoon session, it is strongly advised athletes plan ahead for both personal hydration and nutritional requirements.

There will be plenty of washroom facilities in the Athletes Village area, including both accessible and gender divided facilities.

TOKYO, JAPAN (July 25, 2021) – Olympic competition officially kicked off today at the Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre with the women’s kayak and men’s canoe heats.

Florence Maheu (Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC) was the first Canadian down the course, paddling a strong first run, positioning herself well leading into the second run. Florence cementing her spot into the semi-finals following the second run and will compete on Tuesday July 27.

“I am really proud to perform at my best today,” said Maheu. “I was definitely nervous, and you put that pressure on yourself to deliver a good performance and I felt I did that today. Sometimes you are able to have some good moves but you are not able to put everything together in the race but today I was able to do that in my first run and that is all I can ask for.”

Cameron Smedley (Dunrobin, ON) had a tough day on the Olympic course and did not find his form on either of the qualification race runs, taking several punishing penalties that set him back in the rankings. Smedley needed to deliver a strong second run in order to move up into the top 15 cut-off in order to advance to the semifinals. The second run proved to be faster but unfortunately it was not enough to make the semi–final cut-off.

“I feel like I could have competed with the top contenders in the field and that obviously didn’t happentoday,” said Smedley. “I took some penalties and paddled too cautiously and I think the nerves got the better of me. I will have to reassess where things went wrong here.”

Canada will compete next in the women’s kayak semifinals on Tuesday (Tokyo Time), along with the Olympic debut of women’s canoe at the Olympic Games. Men’s kayak heats start on July 29.

For full results click here.

The Canadian entries are listed below.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

It is with profound sadness that Canoe Kayak Canada acknowledges the passing of Edward Urquhart, Para Kayak paddler from Pickering Rouge Canoe Club.

Edward was a leader in the Para paddling community, competing for Canada at the 2018 Pan American Championship in Dartmouth. He was also a key member of the strong Canoe Kayak Ontario team and his club. This past March, he also competed at the Olympic and Paralympic Team Trials in Burnaby, British Columbia. Outside of paddling, Edward was a Canadian Para Powerlifting record holder and an accomplished long-drive and para golf athlete.

Anyone who spent time as a teammate, competitor or simply crossed paths with Eddie was inspired by his enthusiasm, determination and the joy he took in, and brought to  our sport. Canoe Kayak Canada expresses its very deepest condolences to Edwards’ wife, Andrea, and his two young sons, Eric and Joshua. We also share our condolences with the Pickering Rouge Canoe Club, Canoe Kayak Ontario, Edwards teammates and friends.

“I first met Eddie in Toronto at the 2017 Olympic/Paralympic search. He was a strong and charismatic guy that seemed just as eager to be involved in sport as I was,” said National team Para paddler, Mike Trauner.  “Like myself, Eddie very much included his family, Andrea and his two boys, Eric and Joshua as a part of his Paralympic journey which instantly made a connection between us and strongly believed in leading by example and treating all teammates as family. We have lost more than just a paddler, we have lost our brother and I hope that all CKC members remember Eddie as the man with the iron will and exceptional passion for life. We love you Eddie, may you rest in eternal peace.”

Canoe Kayak Canada’s National teams will be observing a moment of silence in remembrance of Edward, and his amazing generosity of spirit and enthusiasm for our sport, which we will endeavour to continue in his memory.

LJUBLJANA-TACEN, SLOVENIA (July 12, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada’s young slalom paddlers wrapped up competition this past weekend at the ICF 2021 Junior & U23 Canoe Slalom World Championships in Ljubljana-Tacen, Slovenia. This competition marked a significant milestone for Canada’s four U23 and 4 Junior athletes who battled through cancelled training and team selections due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Alex Baldoni achieved Canada’s best-ever performance at the Junior World Championships in the men’s canoe event placing 6^th in the final. While Tacen’s difficult course design proved to challenge the field, Alex Baldoni was very consistent throughout the competition placing 8^th in the heats, 5^th in the semifinals and 6^th in the finals.

“At the beginning of my final I told myself that it was important to enjoy this moment and make the best of it,” said Baldoni. “During my race a few things didn’t go as planned and I tried hard to get back on track and even if I wanted to do better I am still very proud to have finished 6^th at my first Junior World Championship, [I am] so happy to be paddling for my country.”

“I’m thrilled to see our junior and U23 athletes gaining valuable international race experience and a few personal best performances come from this event. Our athletes have faced many challenges over the last 16 months and it’s very rewarding to see their perseverance start to pay-off,” said Tyler Lawlor, CKC team leader.

Olivia Norman placed 24th in the women’s kayak event and 31st in Extreme Slalom. Béatrice Olson gained valuable race experience placing 27th overall in the women’s junior canoe event at her first Junior World Championship competition with three more years left as a junior eligible paddler. Béatrice also placed 22nd in the Extreme Slalom event and 34th in kayak.

Alex Baldoni also competed in the men’s kayak event and got off to an impressive start early in the competition placing 3rd in the heats phase and placed 34^th after penalties. Teammate Jean-Benoit Lemay finished closely behind in 35th place in the kayak event and 23rd in the extreme slalom event.

In the men’s U23 categories Mark Zielonka placed 11th in Extreme Slalom and 51st in the kayak event, teammates Trevor Boyd placed 23rd in Extreme Slalom 46th in kayak. Mael Rivard narrowly missed the semifinal cut-off and finished 41st in kayak. Léa Baldoni finished 30th in Extreme Slalom and 33rd the kayak event.

Additional final results can be found here.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

While we all have the right to express an opinion, it is vitally important that we also recognize how hurtful our comments can be, and that we must take responsibility for educating ourselves to ensure those opinions are well-founded.

In response to this situation, we felt it important to put out a timely message to make clear a few important points.

First, any cases of alleged violations of CKC’s Safe Sport policies are dealt with thoroughly and objectively through the Independent Third Party. We cannot comment on the specifics of any case without consent from the parties involved as confidentiality is a cornerstone of any safe sport program.

Confidentiality also promotes the integrity of the process by allowing for an independent investigation and by respecting voluntary agreements between the parties. Discipline decisions are published to ensure transparency for the sporting community.

Second, spreading unfounded gossip is harmful and hurtful for everyone involved. There is also the potential for a negative ripple effect that could distract our Olympic athletes and coaches as they make final preparations for Tokyo.

Third, CKC has one of the most advanced and progressive safe sport policies among national federations. Widely adopted by paddling clubs across the country, we are constantly looking for ways to better protect participants and to proactively create the conditions for positive athlete experiences. Sport Canada’s announcement this week about a new independent safe sport office is further reason to feel confident about the power of Canada’s safe sport movement and the strength of CKC’s approach.

It’s clear there are members of our paddling family who are struggling with some difficult issues. Let’s commit to supporting each other with kindness and compassion so that the necessary healing can take place and we can move forward with a collective commitment to making canoe kayak safe, welcoming and fun for everyone involved.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to either of us should you have questions or concerns. Queries about the complaint process canbe directed to Brian Ward, Independent Third Party for Canoe Kayak Canada, at: safesport_wwdrs@primus.ca.

Casey Wade, Chief Executive Officer  

Kenna Robins, Senior Manager National Program Development

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OTTAWA (July 7, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced Canada’s canoe/kayak sprint team nominated to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

The 16 paddlers are nominated for Team Canada based on their performances at the 2019 World Canoe Sprint Championships in Hungary, the CKC Olympic trials in Burnaby, B.C. and multiple internal performance assessments conducted in Canada.

Women’s canoe will make its Olympic debut in Tokyo, making the sprint program gender equal, with both men and women competing in four kayak events and two canoe events.

Canada will be well represented in this new Olympic event by multi-time world champions Laurence Vincent Lapointe and Katie Vincent. The duo won gold at the 2018 World Championships, smashing their own world record in the C-2 500m event. Vincent Lapointe took home two additional gold medals at that event in the C-1 200m and C-1 5000m.

“I feel a lot of love and support from the community in these final moments ahead of the women’s canoe debut,” said Vincent. “When the starter says ‘go’ in Tokyo, it will be a moment I hope all Canadians and paddlers will celebrate. It is hard not to reflect on the journey to get here but beyond the results, it’s been the wildest, most rewarding year of my life. These Olympic Games will be an opportunity to celebrate and reap the rewards of our hard work, resilience and dedication. We can’t control the outcome but we can commit to doing our best and leaving it all on the water.”

Team veteran Mark de Jonge, who won K-1 200m bronze at London 2012, will compete in his third Olympic Games. The Nova Scotia -born paddler qualified for Tokyo while competing in the men’s K-4 Olympic trials race-off with teammates Nicholas Matveev, Pierre-Luc Poulin and Simon McTavish.

“It’s a huge relief to finally be nominated to the Canadian Olympic Team after five years of preparation and a lot of uncertainty over the past year,” said de Jonge. “I’m so proud of our team for staying strong through the rough patches and I am confident that our resilience and hard work will pay off when we compete in Tokyo.”

Andréanne Langlois will be returning for her second Olympic Games, after competing at Rio 2016 in two kayak events – K-1 200m and K-4 500m. Langlois won four medals at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games including two gold in the women’s K-2 and K-4 events.

“I believe we have an extremely strong team going to Tokyo,” said Canoe Kayak Canada’s Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “We have been able to keep our athletes on the water throughout a challenging 18 months and while our Olympic nominees have not been able to compete internationally during that time, our assessments at Olympic Team Trials and throughout our preparation indicate that we are on track in each of our events. Tokyo will just be one more bubble experience that we have become accustomed to, so it won’t be a distraction. I know they are looking forward to the start of competition on August 2 and will proudly represent the maple leaf.”

Canadian paddlers have been winning Olympic medals since the sport made its debut at Berlin 1936. Canada’s biggest medal haul came at Los Angeles 1984 where six medals were won, including two gold, from Larry Cain in the C-1 500m and Alwyn Morris and Hugh Fisher in the K-2 1000m. Cain added a silver in the C-1 1000m while Morris and Fisher also won bronze in the K-2 500m. These were also the first Olympic Games at which Canadian women won kayak medals, taking silver in the K-2 500m and bronze in the K-4 500m, 36 years after women’s kayak events were first included on the Olympic program. The most notable women’s kayaker, Caroline Brunet, won three straight medals in the K-1 500m at Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.

Team Canada’s most recent Olympic medals in canoe/kayak sprint came at London 2012 where Adam van Koeverden won his fourth Olympic medal in men’s kayak. Mark De Jonge won a bronze in men’s K-1 200m while Mark Oldershaw won bronze in the C-1 1000m.

Canoe/kayak sprint will take place August 2 to 7 (Days 10 to 15) at the Sea Forest Waterway.

Canadian sprint event entries will be finalized closer to the event start date.

“Fun fact, the C- in C-1 and C-2 doesn’t stand for Canoe, it stands for Canadian! I’m so stoked that we have such strong paddlers, including for the first time, female canoeists, in the Canadian and Kayak events!”, said Team Canada’s Tokyo 2020 Chef de Mission, Marnie McBean.

The athletes nominated are:

Women’s Canoe

Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club)

Laurence Vincent Lapointe (Trois-Rivières Canoe-Kayak Club)

Men’s Canoe

Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Aquatic Club)

Roland Varga (Richmond Hill Canoe Club)

Women’s Kayak

Alanna Bray-Lougheed (Burloak Canoe Club)

Andréanne Langlois (Club de canoë-kayak de Trois-Rivières)

Courtney Stott (Balmy Beach Canoe Club)

Lissa Bissonnette (Point-Claire Canoe Kayak Club)

Madeline Schmidt (Rideau Canoe Club))

Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club)

Men’s Kayak

Brian Malfesi (Ridge Canoe and Kayak Club)

Mark de Jonge (Maskwa Aquatic Club)

Nicholas Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club)

Pierre-Luc Poulin (Lac-Beauport Canoe Club)

Simon McTavish (Mississauga Canoe Club)

Vincent Jourdenais (Club de canoe-kayak de vitesse de Trois-Rivieres)

The coaches nominated are:

Anders Gustaffson (Jönköping, Sweden)

Chad Brooks (Lake Echo, Nova Scotia)

Jon Pike (Dartmouth, Nova Scotia)

Mark Granger (Lachine, Québec)

Mathieu Pelletier (Trois-Rivières, Québec)

Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organizations.

The latest Team Canada Tokyo 2020 roster can be found here and the qualification tracker can be found here.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Colleen Coderre, Communications Lead

Canoe Kayak Canada

C: 613-530-6217

E: ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Josh Su, Specialist, Public Relations

Canadian Olympic Committee

C: 647-464-4060

E: jsu@olympic.ca

Ottawa, July 2, 2021 – As provinces across Canada continue positive steps forward in recovering from the COVID-19 Pandemic, Canoe Kayak Canada and the Rideau Canoe Club announced today that they will move forward with plans to host the 2021 Canoe Kayak Canada Sprint National Championships on Mooney’s Bay from August 23^rd–29^th, 2021.

“The Host Organizing Committee recognizes the invaluable impact Nationals will have for the mental health of our young athletes.  This event will provide much needed motivation for these athletes in their training throughout the summer” said Dr. Anna Wilkinson, Co-Chair, 2021 CKC Sprint National Championships Host Organizing Committee. “We have leveraged the experience gained by Canoe Kayak Canada in running Olympic Trials to create a comprehensive plan for a safe event should the Province of Ontario continue on the current path to re-opening.”

“Over the past several months, we have remained in constant contact with officials at the City of Ottawa and have  worked to develop protocols that will ensure a safe event aligned with public health measures,” said Canoe Kayak Canada Director of Development, Ian Mortimer.  “While we understand if there is an unfortunate step back in a national Covid recovery we may not be able to host the event, we are extremely hopeful, and are planning accordingly.  Athletes across the country have missed nearly two years of competition, and for their benefit, we are committed to doing everything we can to host a safe national event”.

While final race and event details will reflect public health guidelines at the time of the event, athletes can expect some modifications to a traditional “Nationals”.   Race events and qualifications will be limited to singles boats, and the National Championships will incorporate the previously postponed 2021 National Team Trials.   In addition, age specific cohorts (i.e. U18, U17, U16) have been introduced to provide more qualifying opportunities for athletes across the country.

The Sprint National Championships will also serve as an important selection opportunity for athletes to earn a nomination to one or more international competitions in September.  “The Junior & U23 Worlds, Olympic Hopes Regatta and the Senior World Championships are all extremely important competitions for our athletes preparing for Paris 2024 in what is a shortened Olympic cycle due to Covid.”  said Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “With Tokyo in the rear-view mirror and no international competitions for these athletes for two full summers, the global competition experience this Fall lays the foundation for success in Paris and Los Angeles.”

The Host Organizing Committee and Canoe Kayak Canada have developed a safety plan consistent with public health guidelines.  Current plans will ensure participants will be in zones with controlled access to allow for proper physical distancing. To accomplish this, race days will be split by age and gender to ensure a limited number of competitors in the event area at any given time.   As there may not be spectator areas, Canoe Kayak Canada is planning a livestream similar to what was produced for the 2021 Olympic Team Trials in Burnaby, BC earlier this year.  The venue will also be designed to allow for modifications if changes to public health guidelines change over the next two months.

It is still expected Canada’s returning Olympic Canoe and Kayak athletes will be able to return from Tokyo and compete in Ottawa for their home clubs.   As many as 50 Clubs, from across Canada will have athletes competing in qualifying regattas across Canada to earn the right to compete in Ottawa.

Ottawa Tourism has also announced that it will continue in a lead partner role for the event.  “The 2021 Canoe Kayak Canada Sprint National Championships will mark an important milestone for Ottawa as sporting events return to our community”, said Michael Crockatt, President and CEO of Ottawa Tourism.  “Ottawa Tourism is proud to play a leadership role in supporting this event, and we look forward to working with the Rideau Canoe Club, Canoe Kayak Canada, and local community business partners, to make the Championships a success”

– – o – –

About the Rideau Canoe Club

The Rideau Canoe Club is one of Canada’s oldest canoe clubs, and one of the City of Ottawa’s longest continually operating sports facilities.   Rideau Canoe Club Paddlers have been racing on the Rideau Canal and Mooney’s Bay since 1902.   We acknowledge the Rideau Canoe Club resides on the traditional unceded land of the Algonquin Anishnabeg peoples, and the waters on which our paddlers compete has been used for centuries as a route to connect Indigenous peoples across North America.

Over the past 118 years, the Rideau Canoe Club has produced 10 Olympians, and Rideau athletes have won the Sprint Canoe and Kayak National Club Championship Burgee 9 times.  In 2019, 10 Rideau athletes competed for Canada internationally, and won 8 medals at the Commonwealth Games, Junior World Championships and Olympic Hopes Regatta.  Rideau is currently the two-time defending National Champions, having won the 2019 Burgee in Regina, SK.

For more information contact:

Scott Bradley

Co-Chair, 2021 Canoe Kayak Canada Sprint National Championships

scott.bradley@rideaucanoeclub.ca

343.549.5333

The following is an update for our sprint racing community regarding plans for hosting the CKC Sprint Nationals Championships and Selection Trials scheduled for August 23^rd to 29^th.

The event will be named the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships.

Decision Making Overview

The parameters around these events related to COVID-19 prevention measures and restrictions continue to be an evolving reality. The intention with this communication is to provide an overview of the current status and the COVID-19 review of these events.

The following stakeholders were engaged for expertise and feedback in the risk review process: Chief Medical Officer, CKC legal counsel, Volunteer Leadership and Athlete Reps, our partner Host Organizing Committee, government authorities and of course CKC staff.

Our Decision Timelines

Completed (June 8, 2021) – Meeting #1 with Covid Task Force and Athlete Reps for consultation

Completed (June 28, 2021) – Meeting #2 with Covid Task Force and Athlete Reps for consultation

June 30/July 1, 2021 – Decision on 2021 National Championships and next steps

Location decision

After completing our Risk Assessment of the event, CKC is moving forward with the plan for the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships to be held at the Rideau Canoe Club in Ottawa, Ontario.

An important note for our members: we have received positive feedback from appropriate authorities on our protocols, safety plan, and event but we have yet to receive formal approval of the event from Ottawa Public Health and therefore the city.

We would like to thank CKQ for their continued support through the process of securing Montreal as the backup location and all the processes and protocols there.  We would also like to thank the Atlantic Division for offering to host this regatta.

Purpose

Due to Covid-19 and unique for 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships will not only crown national champions but will also be used as part of the AAP Selection process and to identify athletes for the following international competitions:

• Junior & Under 23 World Championships (September 3-6, Portugal
• Olympics Hopes Regatta (September 10-12, Czech Republic)
• Sprint and Paracanoe Senior World Championships (September 16-19, Denmark)

The events that will be part of these Championships can be found in Appendix A.

Logistics Travel/Accommodation booking

We believe that the formal approval will come as the restrictions ease into July and therefore we recommend that any flights needing to be booked should be assured they are refundable or to wait until we have an official approval of the event.  Information around hotel booking will come out shortly from the Organizing Committee and the recommendation would be to ensure that any accommodation booked for the event would be fully refundable until we have official approval.

The Rideau Host Organizing has partnered with HTG to coordinate Hotel Books for the event. The following links can be used to book rooms in convenient hotels.

Below is the link that allows everyone to book one room and up to 10 at a time: Individual booking link

For larger clubs want to book more than 10 rooms we request they use this link which allows them to request as many as they need: Large block link

Based on Proximity to the race course and parking, we would advise using the airport hotels on Hunt Club/Gibford/Paul Anka Drive – The Hampton Inn, Homewood Suites and Holiday Inn Express.  There are restaurants in the parking lot, and a mall not far away.  The other strong recommendation is the Sandman Hotel on Hunt Club. Further details will follow from the Host Organizing Committee.

Schedule & Events

Events & Race card

The events to be raced at the 2021 Nationals are in Appendix A. The proposed race card is in Appendix B.

Qualification & Entries

Entries will be granted based on divisional qualification, followed by an allotted number of random entries allocated as per modified Nationals rulebook, followed by a small number of wild cards to be in reserve to be able to allocate based on a performance recommendation and extenuating circumstances (if necessary, details to be communicated in the coming weeks).  Please refer to Appendix C for the initial proposal.  The number of entries is also based on the proposal submitted and yet to be approved by Public Health.  In the case adjustments need to be made given the number allowed onsite we will update with the final qualification in the coming weeks.

Race Fees

Due to the increased costs around COVID safety protocols, the combination of the events and other circumstances to ensure this event proceeds to the highest possible standard, the race fees will be $100 per entered event, to a maximum of $400 per competitor.  This is a unique circumstance, and one we hope will be unique to this year with the COVID protocols.

Rules for the National Championships

Modified ICF rules during the competition will be applied to the races at the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships, even in those events that are solely run as a Nationals event to allow for consistency of application for officials, coaches and athletes across the full competition.  Advancement from heats to semi finals to finals will be according to modified ICF rules where those events are indicated.  Where there are no semifinals, standard or modified rules according to the rulebook will be applied and will be communicated in the coming weeks.

Further updates to the rules being applied for all aspects of the competition, or the modification of those rules, for the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships will be communicated in the coming weeks.

Coaches per cohort

With the limitations on number of participants on site in a zone, there may be cases where the number of coaches desired may not be able to be accommodated.  This will be communicated as to the allowed numbers per club onsite for each cohort.  This may also depend on the numbers of athletes qualified per club in that cohort.  At a minimum the designated club spokesperson should be onsite in some capacity if there are club athletes competing during that time.

Trophy return

ALL trophies that were awarded at the 2019 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships must be returned at the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships, even if the event will not be contested in this year.  It is mandatory that we receive all trophies by the time the 2021 event commences.  Please inform Kenna Robins (krobins@canoekayak.ca) if there is any servicing that needs to be done on any trophies in advance of the 2021 event.

CanMas

While we are unable to host a CanMas event in conjunction with the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships in August, we will continue our efforts to see if another date may be possible in the fall.  More details will follow on an event and a final decision will be made around August 1^st and information will follow to the community.

Protocols

All athletes competing at the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak National Championships, as well as any other participants, parents &/or guardians will be required to sign an “Acknowledgement of Risk” waiver for participating in the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships.  Information will follow in a future communication.

Based on learnings from the Olympic and Paralympic Team Trials and ICF Protocols used for International regattas, CKC will be instituting robust COVID-19 protocols for this regatta. These protocols will be aligned with public health directives for the host community and will include:

• A PCR negative test to be completed within 72 hours of arriving at competition site.
• Daily attestations by all participants prior to their arrival on-site and for the complete duration of the competitions. Process of communication and how these forms will be completed and tracked to be finalized.
• Specific isolation and testing protocols to handle any suspected cases, in conjunction with public health.

Updated communications and webinars will be provided once protocols and expectations are complete, and it will be mandatory that all participants and parents/guardians understand what is expected prior to the arrival of any participants.

CKC Intake Process & Training

All athletes entering in Trials events must complete a full CKC intake process, complete the ICF mandatory online anti-doping course, and if over the age of 15 to have completed the CAC Safe Sport training, athlete stream, to be eligible for team nomination for the Junior & Under 23 World Championships (September 3-6, Portugal), Olympics Hopes Regatta (September 10-12, Czech Republic) and Senior World Championships (September 16-19, Denmark). This process will include the following forms:

• National Team Intake
• Medical & Emergency Form
• Code of Conduct
• Acknowledgement of Risk for Team Travel
• U18 Travel Form (as applicable)
• ADEL International-Level Athletes Education Program
• For athletes over the age of 15: CKC Safe Sport training, athlete stream (see CKC Safe Sport section below for information)

ParaCanoe Athletes

Any Paracanoe athletes with intent, if selected, to be a part of the World Championship team need complete the Intent to Compete form, along with completed classification forms to Marc Creamer at mcreamer@canoekayak.ca by July 17^th.  Athletes that have a confirmed or review status, through ICF, only need to complete the Intent to Compete form.  Please consult the ICF Master Classification List as required.

International Team Selection

Selection Criteria

The approved updated selection criteria will be available on the CKC website.  A separate communication will be sent to the community once the selection criteria is posted.

International Competition Team Fee

CKC will be organizing travel logistics for the teams travelling to the Junior & Under 23 World Championships (September 3-6, Portugal), Olympics Hopes Regatta (September 10-12, Czech Republic) and Sprint and Paracanoe Senior World Championships (September 16-19, Denmark).

To help in covering these costs, athletes will be required to pay a prorated team fee based on the following priority order: Sprint and Paracanoe Senior World Championships, followed by Junior & U23 World Championships, followed by Olympic Hopes. CKC continues to fund the majority of international team competition costs, team fees will help to contribute in covering  travel logistic costs such as, flights, ground transport, accommodation, meals, participation fee, etc. The athlete may be responsible to cover additional COVID-19 related costs in addition to the team fee, such as Covid testing, quarantine, etc.

Please refer to the updated selection criteria for each team for the fees.

International Team Travel

CKC continues to monitor the international travel landscape, as well as the Government of Canada Official Global Travel Advisories.

Based on the current information available, additional travel requirements for team travel may include COVID-19 testing and quarantine on return to Canada. Athletes will be responsible for organizing pre-departure COVID-19 tests, as required pending travel requirements. CKC will help facilitate pre-travel COVID-19 testing where possible and will support with scheduling COVID-19 testing for return to Canada, as required. Athletes will be responsible to uphold any Government of Canada quarantine requirements for return from international travel. Additional considerations for team travel with minors are being reviewed in conjunction with the CKC Safe Sport Policy.

Note for the Junior & Under 23 World Championships (September 3-6, Portugal): Athletes will need to be prepared to depart to Portugal directly from the 2021 Sprint National Championships.

Applications for Coaches and Team Managers

CKC will be sending out an invitation for Coaches and Team Managers to submit applications to attend and support at the Junior & Under 23 World Championships (September 3-6, Portugal) and Olympics Hopes Regatta (September 10-12, Czech Republic). These professional development opportunities will be volunteer roles with possible honorarium support to the club for time away, as applicable. Travel costs and insurance to be covered by CKC. Information will be emailed directly to clubs, coaches and PTSOs.

CKC Safe Sport Policy

Please be reminded that any club coach, volunteer or official attending the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships fall under our CKC Safe Sport policy and therefore must be screened and trained according to your position.  If you have already completed this for your club, please make sure to send along your confirmation of screening and training to Laurel MacAdam at lmacadam@canoekayak.ca prior to August 1^st.  Any questions on the process please email Kenna Robins at krobins@canoekayak.ca.

For any athletes, 15 years of age and older, hoping to be selected to a CKC team for one of the international competitions, it will be a requirement to have completed the CAC Safe Sport training, athlete stream.  It is recommended considering the tight turn-around for logistical purposes, that this training be completed prior to the National Championships.

Appendix A: Events being held at the 2021 Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships

* for all selection information please refer to the corresponding Selection Criteria on the CKC website

Read here.

Appendix B: Proposed race schedule

*schedule may change and a final version will be published in the coming weeks.

Read here.

Appendix C: Draft Qualification Process

* the rules applicable to this qualification process, including random entries will be sent in a follow-up document with all competition rules that will be used at this event.

** the application of how a performance/extenuating circumstance would be used will be communicated in the coming weeks.

Read here.

OTTAWA, ON (June 25, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada is pleased to launch our updated (2021) Sprint Code of Safety. This Code of Safety revision has been in development over many months and contains updates based on feedback received from various community members and CKC Committees. The updated Sprint Code of Safety is effective immediately.

In the fall of 2020, CKC requested feedback from the paddling community regarding the previous version of the Sprint Code of Safety which was approved by the Sprint Racing Council in 2019. We would like to extend our thanks to all those who reviewed the document and provided your feedback.

The major updates to the Sprint Code of Safety are outlined below.

Read the full Sprint Code of Safety here.

Major Updates:

1. Definitions section. Where the words that have been defined in this section throughout the document they will be Capitalized and Italicized.
2. Decision making process:
   1. During training, coaches will make safety-related decisions and enforce rules, during competitions, the Chief Official, with input from the Regatta Safety Officer and Competition Committee will make safety-related decisions and enforce rules
3. Section 3.1
   1. (g) Recommendations on Safety Motorboats during competitions.
4. Section 3.2.1
   1. (a) updated section to allow for a waiver to be signed and submitted by our Paracanoe athletes prior to each event instead having to demonstrate their strapping release onsite.
5. Section 3.2.2: Environmental section (Winds & Rough Water Conditions, Extreme Heat and Humidity, Air Quality
6. Section 4.1:
   4. Updated 4.1 (k) to include the use of the radio
   5. Added a link to considerations for “near water safety”
7. Section 4.2.2:
   1. (g): added language around Minors
   2. (i): added language around including the use of the radio
8. Section 4.2.4: Separated into Club & Regatta Safety officers

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is excited to announce Together to Tokyo – a community-wide campaign designed to celebrate and encourage our incredible Olympic and Paralympic teams, while connecting and inspiring our country. Together to Tokyo will run from June-September 2021 and will bring together paddling disciplines, CKC members, current paddlers, alumni, family, friends and the entire community in support of our amazing athletes and their accomplishments.

Together to Tokyo offers multiple opportunities for community members to get involved and win limited edition Together to Tokyo prize packs. Activities include:

• Webinars lead by CKC Alumni and current paddlers to inspire our community.
• Trivia for community members to celebrate our sport.
• Together to Tokyo Party Kits for club/organization driven initiatives and viewing parties to encourage our Olympic and Paralympic teams.
• Posting photos or messages of support on social media to connect our paddling community.

Check with your club/organization to find out how to pre-order Together to Tokyo merchandise. Limited quantities may also be purchased at a later date through the CKC Boutique.

Stay tuned for additional information regarding Together to Tokyo activities and check out the Together to Tokyo webpage for updates and information as we get closer to the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

#TogetherToTokyo

OTTAWA (June 3, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced Canada’s canoe/kayak slalom team nominated to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

The four athletes qualified for Team Canada based on their performances at the 2019 World Canoe Slalom Championships in La Seu D’Urgell, Spain, two competitions held in Penrith, Australia in 2020 as well as the Mayor’s Cup in Krakow, Poland on May 29, 2021. This will mark the first time that Canada has sent a full slate of slalom paddlers to the Olympic Games since Sydney 2000. 

“It’s really special to be able to compete at my third Olympics,” said kayaker Michael Tayler. “I’ve learned a lot since 2016 and feel ready to go for it in Tokyo. Having an extra year has been an opportunity to get stronger and recover from some injuries. We’ve been training in Europe since February and then headed straight to Tokyo!” 

A three-time Olympian, Tayler competed as Canada’s lone slalom paddler at London 2012. At just 20 years old, he was the youngest competitor in the field. At Rio 2016, Tayler made his return to the Olympic stage, finishing 16th overall. 

Cameron Smedley will return for his second Olympic appearance in the men’s canoe event.  Smedley captured a silver medal in the men’s C-1 event at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games. 

Kayaker Florence Maheu will make her Olympic debut in Tokyo along with canoeist Haley Daniels. Daniels won a historic bronze medal at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games, the first major multi-sport Games to feature women’s canoe events. Women’s canoe will be making its Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020.

“I have been working towards this goal for 12 years and I am grateful to qualify for the Olympics as the first wave of female canoeists to ever compete at the Olympics,” said Daniels. “I cannot wait for that start line!”

Canada has been competing in canoe/kayak slalom at the Olympic Games since the sport debuted at Munich 1972. After that one-off appearance, it returned to the Olympic program at Barcelona 1992. While no Canadian has won an Olympic medal in canoe/kayak slalom, David Ford came the closest with his fourth-place finish in the men’s K-1 event at Athens 2004. 

Canoe/kayak slalom will take place July 25 to July 30 (Days 2 to 7) at the Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre. Cameron Smedley and Florence Maheu will compete for Canada with Canoe (C-1) Men’s Heats and Kayak (K-1) Women Heats on Sunday, July 25. Haley Daniels and Michael Tayler will compete later in the week on July 28.

“Our canoe/kayak slalom team is an exciting example of the journey of our whole team,” said Team Canada’s Tokyo 2020 Chef de Mission, Marnie McBean. “These veterans, first time Olympians and new sport athletes navigate turbulent waters – with and against the current – while remaining laser focused on their goal. I’m so proud of all that they have accomplished.”

The athletes nominated are:

1. Haley Daniels (Calgary, Alta.) – Women’s Canoe Slalom
2. Florence Maheu (Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que.) – Women’s Kayak Slalom
3. Michael Tayler (Ottawa, Ont.) – Men’s Kayak Slalom
4. Cameron Smedley (Dunrobin, Ont.) – Men’s Canoe Slalom

The coaches nominated are:

1. Anthony Colin (Ottawa, Ont.)
2. Michal Staniszewski (Gatineau, Que.)

Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organisations.

The latest Team Canada Tokyo 2020 roster can be found here and the qualification tracker can be found here.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Colleen Coderre, Communications Lead
Canoe Kayak Canada
C: 613-530-6217
E: ccoderre@canoekayak.ca 

Josh Su, Specialist, Public Relations
Canadian Olympic Committee
C: 647-464-4060
E: jsu@olympic.ca 

The discovery of the 215 Indigenous children in the undocumented burial site at the Residential School in Kamloops, BC is a horrific reminder of the past and present injustices inflicted on Indigenous peoples by colonial institutions and governments in Canada.

The Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) Indigenous Advisory Council (IAC) would like to extend our sincerest condolences to the family and communities impacted by these events and it is our hope that these burial grounds may one day become a place of peace and closure for the families of these lost children.

These events once again point out that the road to reconciliation is difficult, but these are the events that have shaped and continue to shape the relationships between the settler population and Indigenous peoples in Canada and across Turtle Island.

The IAC is committed to inclusion, reconciliation and ensuring all Indigenous youth can grow and develop in relation to the land through culturally relevant outdoor recreation and sports.

We acknowledge that only through reconciliation can we ensure a better opportunity for every child to reach their dreams in honour of those who never had that opportunity. The IAC is committed to the children that never made it home through our continued advocacy for the current and future generations of Indigenous youth.

We ask our Provincial and Territorial Sport Organizations, paddling clubs and leadership to speak to your communities and access the resources linked below.

CKC’s Indigenous Advisory Council have been working on a plan of action to help educate and commemorate our Indigenous Peoples of Canada – announcement is forthcoming.

Information and Support

Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada

www.trc.ca

The National Indian Residential School Crisis Line
1-866 925-4419

Canoe Kayak Canada is in the working phases of developing a new coaching education module. The working title, “We Paddle,” emphasizes our goal of having this program target a broad paddling pathway. This communication is a call-out for available and interested contractors who would be able to help us develop this module fully. Contact information for those interested is available at the end of this proposal.

Vision

A basic introduction programming approach to become the core introductory course  to take new paddlers from zero assumed experience to basic water safety, knowledge of paddling, and basic on-water competency (primary audience are youth 7-13 year olds, but could be applicable for any age).

Mission

Launch a multi-disciplinary Coach Education and accompanying program which introduces new paddlers to the sport and is applicable to a range of paddle craft and types of water. Paddlers will leave this program with increased basic water literacy (beyond swimming competency), understand the core concepts of safe paddling, watercraft handling, and have the basic skills to paddle and enjoy time on the water.

Phase 1: Instructor Education

Concept is to modify the Canoe Kids Coach Education material into a new more generic model, and rebrand this NCCP Community Introduction Course as a generic education for all coaches.

Phase 2: Program Outline

The concept for this program is to take the Canoe Kids program material and reduce and simplify it to the basic introductory steps for paddle instruction for beginners. This will reflect the reality of what Canoe Kids program looks like in practice and create a programing and coach education framework which is applicable to all paddle sports.

The idea is that this is an introductory framework where the topics, skills and competencies are the same, but over time we build a range of specific activities as supporting material for a range of disciplines.

The program should be designed as a sequential introduction to paddling. Starting from basic knowledge and safety then progressively moving to paddling skills and competency on the water. These lessons would be a templated structure that can be delivered as a 5-day camp, a longer series of one- or two-hour lessons, or the basis of swimming pool introduction to paddling.

Deliverables (Phase 1)

1. Discipline consultation and outreach
2. Learning Facilitator guide
3. Coach Reference material
4. Coach Workbook
5. Evaluation Guide
6. Pilot coach training workshop

Timeline & budget (Phase 1)

1. Estimated 100 hours of work (phase 1), rate to be negotiated.
2. Work to be completed before September 2021 (phase 1).
3. Phase 2 will be considered once phase 1 deliverables are complete and may be part of a separate tender.

Application for consideration (phase 1)

Please outline in your application your experience considering the following criteria:

• Education experience,
• NCCP program experience,
• Experience facilitating NCCP content,
• Familiarity with paddling club programs,
• Familiarity with multi-discipline paddling programs.

Please send in your NCCP coach education resume, including references to the criteria above, to imortimer@canoekayak.ca. Application deadline is June 18^th, 2021.

Ottawa, ON (May 21, 2021) – The Canoe Kayak Canada Whitewater Council and Whitewater Ontario have made the difficult decision to cancel the 2021 Whitewater National Championships planned for August 16-22 at the Minden Hills Whitewater Preserve following a review of the public health restrictions and challenges of running such an event during the pandemic.  A working group of coaches, event organizers and technical experts had been working throughout the winter to try to develop creative ways of rising above these challenges.

Unfortunately, with the uncertainty of the pandemic now moving into the summer months, projected reduced participation, and the financial implications of staging this event at the Minden Whitewater preserve have made it unviable to host the National Championships this summer. The Whitewater National Championships is a week long paddling festival featuring a combination of Freestyle, Wildwater, Canoe Slalom and Extreme Slalom events that aim to inspire young paddlers to progress through CKC’s athlete development pathway.

In light of the cancellation of the Championships, Canoe Kayak Canada in collaboration with our provincial organizations Whitewater Ontario, Eau Vive Quebec, The Alberta Whitewater Association and the Alberta Freestyle Kayak Association are planning to host team trials at multiple locations across Canada to ensure that whitewater paddlers will have access to competitive opportunities this summer provided local public health regulations allow for these events to proceed.

2021 Whitewater Team Trials event schedule

Visit Canoe Kayak Canada’s website to get more information and make sure to follow @PlanetCanoe and @CanoeKayakCAN for more live updates.

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information :

Colleen Coderre

Communications

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Ottawa, ON (May 14, 2021) – Canada qualified two boats for the 2020 Paralympic Games today at the ICF Paracanoe World Cup in Szeged, Hungary.  Brianna Hennessy (Ottawa, ON) finished 4^th overall in the VL2 200m event today and Mathieu St-Pierre (Shawinigan, QC) placed 5^th in the men’s VL2 event, both securing their spots for Tokyo. Brianna will compete again tomorrow in the women’s KL1 A final tomorrow. Check out Brianna’s post-race interview here.

“For me, the best part of it is to be able to inspire others that have had a catastrophic accident or that have disabilities, that you don’t have to stop believing in yourself or your dreams,” said Hennessy in a post-race interview with ICF.

“In her first international race, Brianna had a great performance today,” said CKC’s Paracanoe National Team Head Coach Marc Creamer. “The first half of her race really highlighted her athleticism. Unfortunately, she did have some equipment issues that caused her to settle for 4^th place. Ever the athlete, Brianna was already focused on how to improve for Tokyo.”

“Mathieu also had an outstanding performance today with a great start off the line, and held on to secure his spot in Tokyo. It’s been a tough few months for him and it was great to see him put out this excellent performance today.”

Mike Trauner (Pembroke, ON) paddled to a 4^th place finish in the B final in the men’s VL3 event while Erica Scarff (Balmy Beach, ON) secured the win in the KL3 B final.

Andrea Nelson KL2 (Balmy Beach, ON) and Brianna Hennessy KL1 (Ottawa, ON) will both compete in their A finals tomorrow.

Canada has now qualified a total of three paracanoe boats for Tokyo with Andrea Nelson securing a spot in the Women’s KL2 200m event at the CKC Olympic and Paralympic trials in Burnaby, BC.

Paracanoe made its debut at the Paralympics in 2016. The paracanoe programme has been expanded from six races to nine in Tokyo, with two Vaá categories added. There were 60 athletes competing in Rio, and 90 will get the opportunity to paddle for gold in Japan.

Paracanoe World Cup team roster:

We encourage families, friends and fans to show your support and send some love for our athletes on social media, tagging @canoekayakcan.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian paracanoe paddlers, click here.

What:

ICF Canoe Sprint and ParaCanoe World Cup

When:

May 13-15, 2021

Where:

Szeged, Hungary – Map

How to Follow:

Event Website

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

OTTAWA (May 13, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce the eighteen slalom athletes selected to compete in the 2021 International Canoe Federation (ICF) World Cups and Junior/U23 World Championships. These athletes will be competing internationally in canoe and kayak slalom and extreme slalom events.

Of these athletes, eleven qualified for the upcoming slalom World Cups in Prague, Czech Republic and Markkleeberg, Germany respectively, through a combination of pre-selection and regional Figure 8 assessments. The same assessments, as part of CKC’s Covid-19 strategy, were used to select nine Junior athletes and five U23 athletes travelling to Ljubljana, Slovenia in July.

“The pandemic has presented our athletes with very challenging and uncertain training conditions throughout the winter,” said James Cartwright, Senior Manager of High Performance and Coach Development at CKC. “The Slalom Olympic program travelled to Europe for better training conditions this winter to prepare for Tokyo but we have developed a creative selection mechanism for the paddlers remaining in Canada. We are utilizing a regional flatwater based assessment to select the team to join the Tokyo group and compete in the first two World Cups and Junior/U23 World Championships. It’s critical that our athletes return to international competition as we prepare for Tokyo and Paris.”

In preparation for Tokyo, an upcoming selection race in Krakow, Poland on May 29^th will be used to determine the qualification of a Women’s C1 paddler for the Tokyo Olympic Games. This final selection will round out the complete slalom team heading to Japan to represent Canada. To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications, click here.

A full team list for these upcoming international competitions can be found here.

2021 ICF Slalom World Cup 1

When: June 11-13, 2021

Where: Prague, Czech Republic

How to Follow: Event website

2021 ICF Slalom World Cup 2

When: June 18-20, 2021

Where: Markkleeberg, Germany

How to Follow: Event website

2021 ICF Junior & U23 Canoe Slalom World Championships

When: July 6-11, 2021

Where: Ljubljana, Slovenia

How to Follow: Event website

The ICF will confirm the competitions closer to the dates, with consideration to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Visit Canoe Kayak Canada’s website to get more information and make sure to follow @PlanetCanoe and @CanoeKayakCAN for more live updates.

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information :

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Ottawa, ON (May 13, 2021) – Canada adds two men’s kayak crews to the start line in Tokyo today in the Men’s K4 500m and the Men’s K2 1000m events.

Mark De Jonge (Masqua Aquatic Club), Nick Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club), Pierre-Luc Poulin (Lac-Beauport Canoe Club) and Simon McTavish (Mississauga Canoe Club) secured their Olympic spots today winning both qualification races at the Olympic Basin in Montreal, Canada. They were competing head to head against Brian Malfesi, Dominik Crête, Vincent Jourdenais, Laurent Lavigne in a two-part race series.

Two-time Olympian and bronze medallist, Mark de Jonge reflects on the very long journey to Tokyo. “It feels very satisfying today having put so much effort and energy into this process. It has been such a long haul for everyone. There has been so much doubt around so many things over the last year and it all gets bottled up. That doubt was all released today.”

The Men’s K4 500m berth was secured by this winning crew back in 2019 at the ICF Sprint World Championships. Both the men’s and women’s Canadian K4 teams are now finalized for the Tokyo Olympic Games.

Brian Malfesi (Ridge Canoe Club) and Vincent Jourdenais (Club de Canoë-Kayak de Trois-Rivières) also lock up their qualification for Tokyo in the Men’s K2 1000m by achieveing the highest rank at Olympic Team Trials and completing the six-man kayak team for the Games.

“This has been a long process for these crews,” said Graham Barton, Chief Technical Officer at CKC. “Due to exceptional circumstances, including an injury just before Olympic Trials and a recent decision to remain at home during the World Cup season, the Men’s K4 finals to select athletes were rescheduled to this week in Montreal.  We appreciate how difficult this has been on the athletes and the coaches but their professionalism throughout the Covid restrictions has Canada going to Tokyo with an experienced K4 crew that achieved some respectable times in cold water conditions this week.  I am confident they can make the final in Tokyo.”

Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic selection continues for some CKC teams with additional internal selection procedures or Global Olympic qualification opportunities throughout the rest of May.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

*Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the COC’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organizations.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Ottawa, ON (May 13, 2021) – Canada’s top paracanoe paddlers are set to compete in Szeged, Hungary at the ICF canoe sprint and paracanoe World Cup from May 13-15. Over 130 athletes from 37 countries will battle for remaining paracanoe quotas available for Tokyo. There are four quotas still up for grabs in each of the five Paralympic events.

Six Canadian paracanoe paddlers are competing in Szeged this week, with five of them aiming to secure a quota for the 2020 Paralympic Games. Canada has already secured one berth in the Women’s KL2 200m with Andrea Nelson securing qualification at the CKC Olympic and Paralympic trials in Burnaby, BC. Andrea also finished 5^th at the 2019 World Championships.

“This is our biggest team yet to compete at a World Cup event. We were very impressed with the ongoing performance of both our veterans and some new athletes to the sport,” said CKC Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “For three of our athletes, this will be their first World Cup racing experience against some of the best in the world. Those that have yet to qualify will have to finish in the top 4 eligible crews to join Andrea Nelson in Tokyo as part our nominated Paralympic Team.”

“It is not as simple as just looking at the results because some countries competing will have already qualified a spot. Additionally, if an athlete races and qualify in both the Vaá outrigger canoe and the kayak events then the quota is assigned to the Vaá so it opens up a kayak spot. It will come down to the very end, when all the racing is done. We certainly look forward to supporting and cheering on the team this weekend!”

Paracanoe made its debut at the Paralympics in 2016. The paracanoe programme has been expanded from six races to nine in Tokyo, with two Vaá categories added. There were 60 athletes competing in Rio, and 90 will get the opportunity to paddle for gold in Japan.

Paracanoe World Cup team roster:

We encourage families, friends and fans to show your support and send some love for our athletes on social media, tagging @canoekayakcan.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian paracanoe paddlers, click here.

What:

ICF Canoe Sprint and ParaCanoe World Cup

When:

May 13-15, 2021

Where:

Szeged, Hungary – Map

How to Follow:

Event Website

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

CKC is holding an introductory officiating course (Combined Level 1&2). This course is open to anyone across the country looking to get involved or learn more about the role of officiating in our sport. No experience is necessary, but experienced officials are welcome to join to refresh their knowledge. The course is designed to lead you through the basics of officiating the various positions and give you the knowledge to be able to participate in a competition.

Date: Sunday May 16th
Time: 6pm EST (approximately 2 – 2.5hrs)

The course will be conducted over Zoom in English.

Register Here: https://forms.gle/gFBqxVFRU35LbCsEA

“Why I Officiate” video: https://youtu.be/Mlc2OQIlHso

Please contact Erin Schaus with any questions erinschaus@gmail.com.

Ottawa, ON (May 5, 2021) – Canada adds two more Olympic sprint paddlers to the start line in Tokyo with Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Aquatic Club, NS) and Roland Varga (Richmond Hill Canoe Club, ON) earning their spots in the Men’s C2 1000m event to be held on the Sea Forest Waterway in Tokyo, Japan this summer at the 2020 Olympic Games.

Connor and Roland secured two race wins in the C2 1000m finals at the Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) Olympic trials in Burnaby, BC in April and Connor won the C1 1000m finals. These results complete the CKC requirements for both athletes to be nominated to the Canadian Olympic Committee for inclusion on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Team.

“I am extremely pleased for Connor and Roland and look forward to seeing what they can do in Tokyo,” said Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “The last time they raced they accomplished personal bests, just missing the final at the 2019 World Championships. Their results at CKC Olympic Team Trials indicate they have not missed a beat in their preparation despite the Covid restrictions we all have had to endure. We are in the final stretch of completing our team and this announcement adds to what I believe will be a extremely strong group of athletes representing Canada at the Tokyo Olympic Games”

The remaining boats for CKC still have to complete additional internal selection procedures or Global Olympic qualification throughout the rest of May. CKC will be sending a team of Para Canoe athletes to the ICF Paralympic Qualification in Szeged, Hungary and a small team to the ICF Global Olympic Qualifier in Barnaul, Russia later this month.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

*Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the COC’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organizations.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Ottawa, ON (April 29, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) announces that it will not be sending a full team of Canadian paddlers to the 2021 World Cup events. Due to the ongoing global pandemic, travel restrictions, and health considerations, all qualified boats will remain in Canada to continue training in the lead up to the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games.

CKC will seek strategies for sending only those boats that must qualify at the Final Olympic and Paralympic Qualification events in May. This decision-making process was led by CKC’s Medical Lead and CKC’s High Performance Operations team with health and performance front of mind. CKC will be sending the Para team to the ICF Paralympic Qualification in Szeged, Hungary and athletes in the Women’s K1 200m and Men’s C1 1000m to the Last Chance qualification events at the ICF Global Olympic Qualifier in Barnaul, Russia.

Once travel decisions are finalized for the Final Olympic and Paralympic qualification events, CKC will release further information, including the roster list.

CKC recognizes the resilience displayed by all the National Team paddlers as they persevere through the daily challenges inflicted by the pandemic. CKC is dedicated and committed to delivering the best possible preparation for all athletes and their podium success in Tokyo.

For information and updates on Canadian qualifications and details on Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Regattas, click here.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

As COVID-19 continues to alter our lives, including affecting where, when, how, and if, we are able to paddle across the country, water safety needs to remain a priority for all.

The most important safety measure all paddlers can take is to wear a Personal Flotation Device (PFD) while paddling. All participants are strongly encouraged to wear a Government of Canada approved PFD at all times while in the boat, irrespective of their age or swimming ability.

As some areas of the country remain in lockdown with paddling clubs and facilities closed, questions have arisen related to boat removal and responsibility for paddling. With regards to these questions CKC has published this Boat Removal and Individual Paddling Statement.

Paddlers should always respect CKC’s On Water Safety Policies, particularly as they relate to cold water paddling, and be aware of the requirements for paddlers laid out by Transport Canada in the Safe Boating Guide.

Critically, all paddlers using racing canoes and kayaks should understand the alternative requirements for on-board safety equipment which applies only to those engaged in formal training, in an official competition or in final preparation for an official competition.

For those paddling sprint racing boats, outside of formal training or competition environments, every boat operating in daylight hours and within sight of shore/navigation markers must carry at minimum a:

1. PFD for each crew member (Strongly encouraged to be worn properly at all times.)
2. Buoyant heaving line (15m)
3. Bailer
4. Sound Signaling Device (Whistle)

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is pleased to announce new updates to its digital platform, ckcmember.ca.  Through a continued partnership with web design and mobile application company immediaC, CKC has taken member feedback and learnings from year one of the registration platform and made updates to improve user experience and key functionalities.

Canoe Kayak Canada will be using ckcmember.ca for its National level registration and will continue to integrate this platform into the CKC mobile application, which will be used in 2021 for Sprint Results and competition live streaming.

CKC has worked with immediaC to make the inputting of National level membership user friendly and adaptable for the unique needs of each Province or Territory. Additionally, the system has undergone improvements to remain flexible and accessible for our member organizations. CKC will continue to work with the leadership of its Councils and Provincial Territorial Sport Organization leads to set up membership for each jurisdiction. CKC is also offering the optional use of the system to all CKC member organizations for their own organizational registration, digital waivers, and membership tracking.

The specifics around Sprint Competitive Memberships and other National Memberships will be communicated in conjunction with your Flag Officer or Provincial leadership.

To view the updated ckcmember.ca information manual, please click here. To watch our how-to videos for getting started in the system, please click here.

For more information and to explore the updated system further, please visit ckcmember.ca. To set up an appointment with Canoe Kayak Canada, contact Scott Best (sbest@canoekayak.ca) or click here.

Ottawa, ON (April 1, 2021) – In light of the ICF decision to postpone the Junior & U23 World Championships to September 2021, and due the increasing Covid-19 concerns across the country, Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) has decided to postpone the Sprint National Team Trials to August – location will be Ottawa or Montreal and dates are still to be determined. This change will allow a longer preparation period for many of our paddlers who have been unable to get on the water yet due to the varying COVID-19 restrictions across the country. We believe this is the only prudent course of action when evaluating the current COVID-19 situation and the significant logistical and financial commitments imposed on all stakeholders, including athletes, parents, and coaches.

This decision will shift our preparation plan to the club environment in April/May, to regional competition in June/July, to National competitions in August, and International competitions in September. We are currently exploring possible dates and formats for an August trials, which we will plan in concert with the Sprint National Championships currently slated to be held in Ottawa from August 24-29. The Sprint National Team Trials will be held in either Ottawa or Montreal. Confirmation of the location and dates will be announced as soon as possible. The intention is to reduce travel frequency and allow athletes to attend both the trials and the National Championships.

Based on the current Covid-19 outlook, including travel restrictions, limits on crew boat activity and limits on event sizes, the National Championships will likely be restricted to singles (K1/C1/V1) events. We will continue to monitor the Covid-19 landscape, and if crew boats become an option, we will add those to our planned race card. CKC thanks the Rideau Canoe Club (RCC) organizing committee for all their ongoing efforts and we will continue to work closely with RCC to host a successful event. We are confident that we will be able to run a safe Championships in August.

We will be continuing to work with the Coaches Technical Committee, Domestic Development Committee and the Sprint Racing Council to finalize our plans for these modified National Championships in the coming weeks. The draft race card and qualification plan will be posted on June 1^st and will be finalized by July 1^st.

We will also work with our Provincial/Territorial and Divisional leaders in the coming weeks to explore options for aligned regional competition at the end of June to provide some virtual competition amongst our community.

Please note these changes to do not impact Olympic and Paralympic preparation or planned competitions at this point in time. All activities for Tokyo continue to move forward as planned.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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Ottawa, ON (March 24, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is thrilled to announce the roster of sprint paddlers nominated to compete in the 2021 international sprint events. Twenty-seven athletes (listed below) will be headed to World Cup events in Szeged, Hungary, and Barnaul, Russia.

Representing Canada at the 2021 Under-23 World Championships in Portugal, are Sophia Jensen (Cascades), Julia Lilley Osende (Mic Mac Aquatic Canoe Club) and Laurent Lavigne (Club de canoe-kayak de Trois Rivieres).

All nominations are based on performances at the CKC Olympic and Paralympic trials held in Burnaby BC earlier this month. Additional internal selections will continue at World Cup events in May and this summer back on home soil. Dates and locations are still to be determined.

While the Canadian Sprint Olympic and Paralympic selection continues through the World Cup season and final Olympic qualifiers this spring, six athletes have already booked their tickets to Tokyo. The following qualified athletes include: Katie Vincent in C1, Andreanne Langlois, Alanna Bray-Lougheed, Michelle Russell, and Madeleine Schmidt in K4, and Andrea Nelson in Para Canoe. These athletes will compete at World Cup events and will ultimately be nominated to the Canadian Olympic Committee when the final Olympic and Paralympic teams are confirmed.

“With the World Cup season on the horizon and Olympic spots still on the line it will be interesting for everyone to gauge their performance level after a long hiatus away from competing,” said Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton. “I am confident our athletes have prepared well despite the Covid restrictions they have had to navigate for the last several months and personally I think everyone is excited to experience international racing again.”

Below are the nominated Canadian sprint international teams:

*An additional athlete in the men’s C1 1000m will be added to this roster following the outcome of the postponed Olympic trials final – timing and location tbd.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Burnaby, BC (March 15, 2021) – It was an eventful day on Burnaby Lake today as competition wrapped up for Canadian Sprint Olympic hopefuls.

Two finals events were postponed yesterday, the women’s C2 500m final and the men’s C1 1000m final, due to reported symptoms of illness, signalling the activation of the CKC COVID protocols. The affected individuals were immediately placed into isolation, steps for proactive contact tracing were initiated in consultation with public health officials, and COVID testing. These races will be rescheduled with dates and locations still to be determined.

The women’s K2 500m Final 2 race win was secured by Natalie Davison (Rideau Canoe Club) and Courtney Stott with a time of 1:46.53. Second place went to Lissa Bissonnette (Club de Canoe Pointe-Claire) and Madeline Schmidt (Rideau Canoe Club) with a time of 1:47.23.

The men’s K1 200m Final 2 was won by Nicholas Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club) today. 2012 Olympic bronze medallist, Mark De Jonge (Maskwa Aquatic Club) secured Saturday’s Final 1 win which typically results in a race-off between the two top paddlers. All race-offs were deferred to a date and location to be determined by the Chief Technical Officer.

The women’s K1 500m Final was dominated by Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club), delivering a perfect score card at these Olympic trials and along with securing the K4 500m Olympic qualification on Friday.

The final race of the day featured the men’s K2 1000m final 2 with Nicholas Matveev (Balmy Beach Canoe Club) and Simon McTavish (Mississauga Canoe Club) securing their second finals win and the continuation of their qualification journey on the road to the Olympic Games.

“It was a great four days of racing and we need to thank the volunteers and officials who made it all possible,” said CKC’s CTO, Graham Barton.  “It is always difficult when things do not go completely according to plan, but our priority has always been through this process to ensure the safety of everyone by following our protocols and it is these exact protocols that made this event possible in the first place.  We will provide an alternative opportunity to run the two events we had to cancel at another date and location.  In the end, I am confident that the team we ultimately will take to Tokyo will be very competitive in the finals of every event.”

The Canadian Sprint Olympic and Paralympic trials continue through the World Cup season and final Olympic qualifiers in the spring, where the final Olympic and Paralympic teams will ultimately be confirmed.

CKC would like to thank Canoe Kayak BC, the City of Burnaby and Tourism Burnaby for their support of this event.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

What:

CKC Olympic and Paralympic Sprint Trials

When:

March 11-14, 2021

Where:

Burnaby, BC – Map

How to Follow:

Event Website

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Burnaby, BC (March 12, 2021) – Canadian history was made today as the first-ever paddler in women’s canoe, Katie Vincent qualified* to represent Canada, in the women’s C1 event, at the Tokyo Olympic Games.  The women’s K-4 500m team also booked their ticket to Tokyo* today with impressive back-to-back final wins in Burnaby.

It was an exhilarating day of racing with the women’s K-4 crews kicking off racing for Olympic qualification. Alanna Bray-Lougheed (Burloak Canoe Club), Andréanne Langlois (Club de canoe-kayak de vitesse de Trois-Rivieres), Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club), and Madeline Schmidt (Rideau Canoe Club) won their second K-4 500m finals of the CKC Olympic and Paralympic Sprint Team Trials, securing their nomination for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

“I think we had the first race jitters yesterday, got those over with, and then today we just put it all together,” said Russell. This event marking the first racing opportunity for the team in almost two years due to the pandemic. “Covid-19 made us learn a lot about ourselves and made us tougher as athletes and as people too,” added Langlois. “We have trained in every weather condition – hail, snow, giant waves,” said Schmidt. “It has definitely brought us closer together as a team.”

Later in the morning, the Women’s C1 200m final got off to a clean start with 10-time World Champion, Laurence Vincent Lapointe (Club de canoe-kayak de vitesse de Trois-Rivieres) looking to add to her race win from Thursday. Meanwhile, Katie Vincent (Mississauga Canoe Club), who secured Canada’s berth at the 2019 World Championships, was just as hungry for the opportunity, stealing the second race win in a nail-biter photo finish across the line.

The C1 200m tie forced a race-off between the Katie and Laurence at 2pm PT. The Canadian duo lined up again to deliver yet another heart pounding performance with Katie taking the final win with only millimeters separating the two boats. Results

“It’s hard to put into words (how I’m feeling) right now,” said Katie Vincent. “It’s my birthday today and I can’t imagine a better birthday present than this. It was a fight right until the end and a positive takeaway for our team that we have such a strong field of female paddlers. Four years ago, we had no group to train with and look at us now. We can take pride in the team that we’ve built and I look forward to getting in the boat with Laurence to race the C2 500m event tomorrow. It’s fun to go fast!”

“We are so thrilled to see two of the best paddlers in the world racing together after such a long hiatus and a challenging period of time,” said Casey Wade, CKC Chief Executive Officer. “With respect to the women’s C2 500m event, we continue to work closely with the International Canoe Federation to secure an additional women’s canoe Olympic quota spot due to extenuating circumstances dating back to the 2019 World Championships. This will also allow us to have a second entry in the women’s C1 200m Event.”

Connor Fitzpatrick (Senobe Canoe Club) and Roland Varga (Richmond Hill Canoe Club) secured their second finals win in the C2 1000m to lock up their advancement for the World Cup season.

Simon McTavish (Mississauga Canoe Club) also crossed the line with another win to confirm his Olympic journey continues in the Men’s K1 1000m.

Michelle Russell (Cheema Aquatic Club) celebrated another win in the K1-200m final today.

The Para Canoe finals saw Andrea Nelson (Balmy Beach Canoe Club) earn a nomination to the Canadian Paralympic Committee for inclusion on Team Canada.  Additional Para athletes who won both finals but still need to meet criteria for a nomination include Erica Scarff (Mississauga Canoe Club) in the women’s KL3 200m Class while Gabriel Ferron-Bouius (Rideau Canoe Club) took top spot on the men’s side and Stefan Samoila won the KL2 Class.  Mathieu St. Pierre VL2 and Mike Trauner VL3 rounded out the winners in the Va Classes.

Racing takes place on Burnaby Lake over the course of four days, wrapping up on Sunday March 14.

CKC would like to thank Canoe Kayak BC and Tourism Burnaby for their support of this event.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

*Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the COC’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organizations.

What:

CKC Olympic and Paralympic Sprint Trials

When:

March 11-14, 2021

Where:

Burnaby, BC – Map

How to Follow:

Event Website

Live Streaming

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Burnaby, BC (March 10, 2021) – Canada’s top sprint paddlers are set to compete at the 2021 Olympic and Paralympic team trials in Burnaby, BC from March 11-14. Originally scheduled to be held in Lake Lanier, Georgia last April, this qualification event will mark the first racing opportunity for Olympic and Paralympic Sprint hopefuls in nearly two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Racing will take place on Burnaby Lake over the course of four days with Olympic and Paralympic selection on the line. The outcomes of this event will affirm athlete selections and nominations for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in the Women’s C-1 and Women’s K-4 500m events. Additionally, these trials will select teams advancing to the 2021 World Cup events and the final Olympic and Paralympic qualifiers in May 2021.

“I am very excited to see some racing,” said CKC Chief Technical Officer, Graham Barton.  “It has been almost two years since our athletes have been able to compete and I am very proud of what we have been able to accomplish these past several months.  When the races start on Thursday it will be because of the efforts of many stakeholders including our coaches, staff, officials and volunteers who have all worked tirelessly to make this all possible.  In particular, Canoe Kayak BC and the Burnaby Rowing Club have been fantastic in getting the venue ready.  I think we will see some impressive races this week and I know we will go to our first international competition with a very strong team.”

Canada’s elite sprint paddlers have been training on Vancouver Island for the last six months with COVID travel restrictions preventing the team from locating in Florida. The team recently moved to Burnaby for this closed event, operating under strict COVID protocols – no spectators, media and limited personnel onsite.

“The athlete dedication and commitment to our protocols and living arrangements have enabled our team to continue to prepare for the Games.  Our hosts on Shawnigan Lake in Vancouver Island and more recently here in the City of Burnaby have been first class and while the BC coast is new to us for training, it now feels like home.”

CKC would like to thank Canoe Kayak BC and Tourism Burnaby for their support of this event. We encourage families, friends and fans to show your support and send some love for our athletes on social media, tagging @canoekayakcan.

To learn more about the status of Tokyo qualifications for Canadian sprint paddlers, click here.

What:

CKC Olympic and Paralympic Sprint Trials

When:

March 11-14, 2021

Where:

Burnaby, BC – Map

How to Follow:

Live Streaming – Event Website

Subscribe to Canoe Kayak Canada’s mailing list to get all news and results directly to your email.

About Canoe Kayak Canada

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada, one of Canada’s top performing summer sports with a total of 24 Olympic medals, and a leader in the Paralympic movement. Canoe Kayak Canada is a member-based organization that includes an intricate network of clubs as well as provincial, territorial and divisional paddling associations. Elite National Team athletes proudly represent Canada at various competitions around the globe – most notably the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan American Games, ICF World Cups as well as Junior, Under 23 and Senior World Championships. Follow Canoe Kayak Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada is saddened at the recent loss of Ray Palmer who was an incredible paddler, mentor, and Commodore.

Ray was passionate about paddling, serving as Commodore of the Calgary Canoe Club and the 76^th Commodore of the Canadian Canoe Association, now CKC. His local work included the construction of the new Calgary Canoe Club clubhouse, of which Ray’s leadership and lobbying played a major role in its success. He mentored many young paddlers, inspiring those he met with his enthusiasm for life, sport, wilderness, adventure, and the spirit of fair play.

Ray loved being on the water and passed that love onto his children and grandchildren. The Palmer family is set to scatter his ashes into a local river when the ice thaws to send him on his last big paddling adventure.

Ray Palmer’s obituary can be found here: https://www.arbormemorial.ca/edenbrook/obituaries/ray-banks-palmer/62435

OTTAWA, ON (March 8, 2021) – Canoe Kayak Canada is pleased to welcome Kenna Robins as its Senior Manager of National Program Development. In her new role, Kenna will focus on managing the delivery of key sport development programs and partnerships throughout Canada.

“We are thrilled to welcome Kenna back to our CKC team,” said Casey Wade, CEO of Canoe Kayak Canada. “She has demonstrated her ability to work collaboratively with stakeholders to develop and elevate the sport. I know she will play a critical role in helping Canoe Kayak reach its full potential.”

Kenna will work with the clubs, divisions, and provincial and territorial organizations to strengthen partnerships through effective and regular communication and strategically aligning CKC to maximize our collective resources and efforts around common programs, priorities and objectives.

Kenna will manage several key programs, including CKC’s Safe Sport program, the Canada Games program, help manage the 2022 Canoe and Para Canoe World Championships  and work closely with the Senior Manager of Coach Development to manage the Team Red program (LTAD) and provide support for development programs across CKC’s diverse paddling disciplines. Robins will also lead, in partnership with other key staff and stakeholders, the successful implementation of the Sprint National Championships.

“I am thrilled to be back with CKC in this new capacity,” shares Robins. “I look forward to working with this great team and all the partners across the country and building on the great initiatives and programs. I was so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with an amazing group of people at the COC and I wish to thank them for the past few years.”

Kenna is returning to CKC in this new role, having previously worked as CKC’s lead coach for the U23 and U18 women’s kayak program for several years. She was also the head coach at the Rideau Canoe Club for over four years.

Most recently, Kenna worked at the Canadian Olympic Committee in multiple capacities, including Project Manager and Business Integration Manager, overseeing business operations and internal stakeholder communications.  Kenna holds a Bachelor degree in Electrical Engineering from Carleton University and a Bachelor degree in Education from the University of Ottawa. She is also a Level 4 certified coach, a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and a Chartered Professional Coach (CAC).

Kenna will work closely with all of the CKC staff, including Ian Mortimer, who is transitioning into high performance to support the strategic initiatives in this area. We welcome Kenna to the team as she officially starts in her new role on April 6^th, 2021.

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For more information:

Colleen Coderre

Communications Lead

Canoe Kayak Canada

ccoderre@canoekayak.ca

Canoe Kayak Canada (CKC) is committed to the shared obligation of creating a sport culture and environment in which all participants can thrive. CKC’s Safe Sport policy aims to protect the health and well-being of the organization, its members, and participants. This policy and its reporting process ensure an environment free from maltreatment, violence, harassment, abuse, and discrimination.

In the interest of having a harmonized safe sport system from coast to coast to coast, CKC has designed its policies so that every PTSO, Division and Club can adopt the CKC Safe Sport Policies. CKC will continue to work with our members to adopt the Safe Sport policy into their own organizations, as well as understand and comply with screening and educational requirements. If necessary due to Provincial/Territorial (PT) legislation or requirements from PT funding partners, CKC is pleased to work with any PTSO, Division or Club to modify the CKC Safe Sport Policies for application so that they may apply at the PSTO, Division or Club level, as applicable. CKC will also continue to work with Provinces and Territories (for example Quebec) where other Safe Sport Policies have been made mandatory to understand how the different jurisdictions can co-exist.

Adoption of Policies:

To facilitate the adoption of CKC’s Safe Sport Policies, CKC has created a Safe Sport Member Declaration (EN/FN) which can be adopted by member organizations at the Board level and signed off on by the appropriate representative. Once completed, the declaration should be sent to CKC (lmacadam@canoekayak.ca).

CKC is also recommending that members develop a webpage dedicated to Safe Sport for information and links to the CKC Safe Sport hub page.

The steps for adoption are laid out in this graphic.

A detailed Q&A document can be found here which details frequently asked questions.

Training & Screening

The Safe Sport policy contains recommended and required training and screening for different roles based on the risk level associated with the role and authority of community members. All individuals whose position with Canoe Kayak Canada or a Member is one of trust or authority will be required to submit screening documents and/or complete training.

The policy’s Screening Requirements Matrix as part of the Screening Policy outlines Risk Levels and Associated Recommended and Required Training and Screening.

Training requirements include the required completion of CAC Safe Sport Training and/or Respect in Sport – Activity Leaders Training for level 2 and 3 risk levels, and the recommended completion of this training for level 1 risk levels. In addition, all Coaches are required to be Making Ethical Decisions certified.

Screening requirements for risk levels 1, 2 and 3 include submitting screening documents to an independent third party appointed by CKC that will function as the Screening Committee. The required documents based on an individual’s risk Level are detailed in the Screening Policy. They include an Application form, a Screening Disclosure form and may include letters of reference, a driver’s abstract, an Enhanced Police Information Check (E-PIC) or a Vulnerable Sector Check depending on the applicable risk level. Organizations will have the option to use the secure, confidential platform CKCMember.ca to submit their screening documents and have them independently verified. Details on this process will be communicated in the coming weeks.

The complete Safe Sport policy can be found here.

Please visit CKC’s Safe Sport page for more information.

Canoe Kayak Canada is very saddened to hear of the passing of João Tomasini Schwernter – President of the Brazilian Canoe Federation/COPAC. He will be missed by the entire paddling community and we send our sincere condolences to his family and friends during this very difficult time.

Statement from the International Canoe Federation (ICF):

The International Canoe Federation is mourning the passing of long time board member and passionate canoe sports advocate, Joao Tomasini Schwertner, who died on Sunday in Brazil following complications of Covid-19.

Mr Tomasini, who was 61, was one of the longest serving leaders of Olympic sport in Brazil, having been president of the Brazilian Canoe Federation (CBCa) since 1989, and a member of the Brazilian Olympic Committee since the same year.

ICF President, Jose Perurena, paid tribute to his long-time colleague and friend.

“Over many years Joao has been a tireless worker driving the growth and development of canoeing, not just in the Pan American region, but throughout the world,” Mr Perurena said.

“Through Joao, canoeing in his region always had a strong voice at the ICF table. His passion for the sport was obvious to all, and the many hours he devoted to the sport will never be forgotten.

“He was also a valued friend of everyone in the canoeing family. His passing from this dreadful virus will be felt strongly throughout the paddling world.”

Mr Tomasini served as president of the South American Canoe Federation (CoSurCa) from 2010 to 2018, and had been president of the Pan American Canoe Federation (COPAC) since 2017.

He first joined the board of the ICF in 1994, and served as a vice-president from 1998 until 2008, and again from 2010 to 2014.

He tested positive for Covid-19 on December 17, and was admitted to the Marcelino Champagnat Hospital in Brazil the following day. He spent 30 days in the hospital’s intensive care unit.

ICF vice-president and president of the German Canoe Federation, Thomas Konietzko, said canoeing owed a great debt to Mr Tomasini.

“Joao was the driving force behind the incredible growth of our sport in Brazil and Pan America,” Mr Konietzko said.

“He will leave a gap that we will not be able to fill. He was also a friend you could count on, and leaves a great legacy for our beloved sport.

“We will miss him. My thoughts are with his family.”

Mr Tomasini devoted much of his life to canoeing. He was instrumental in the formation of the Brazilian Canoe Federation, and played a leading role in organising numerous canoe championships at an ICF, South American and Pan American level.

ICF secretary general, Simon Toulson, said Mr Tomasini was one of canoeing’s great leaders.

“At the ICF we have been very fortunate to have strong leaders all over the world, and none have been stronger and worked harder than Joao,” Mr Toulson said.

“Joao not only worked to establish canoeing as a competitive sport in his region, he also worked to ensure its growth and development. The pride he took at the Rio Olympics in showcasing the sports he loved so passionately was clear for everyone to see.

“Joao was also an incredibly popular ICF board member. His views on all aspects of our sport were widely sought after and respected by his colleagues, who I am sure are all deeply feeling his loss today.”

The ICF extends its sympathies to Mr Tomasini’s family and friends, and to everyone in the international canoeing community.

CKC was informed on November 24 that the International Canoe Federation (ICF) held a Board meeting and voted to add two new Whitewater Extreme Slalom events to the Olympic Games in Paris, 2024. This was done by reducing the Sprint program from 12 events to 10 events. CKC was informed of the meeting on extremely short notice and raised serious concern around the timing and the decision-making process.

We understand that the ICF Board will meet next week to confirm the racing distances and program for Canoe Sprint. These recommendations will be forwarded from the ICF to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the IOC will meet in early to mid-December to make its final decisions and announcements on the Sport and Event Schedule for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

ICF Release

CKC will provide further information as it becomes available.

OTTAWA, ONTARIO (November 23, 2020) — Canoe Kayak Canada is pleased to announce the 2020 recipients of the Club Development award and Coach Developer award. These awards were presented at the CKC Annual Summit held virtually on Saturday, November 21.

CKC Club Development Award

The Club Development Award is presented to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club. Hector Carranco, of the Rideau Canoe Club (RCC), has been a dedicated volunteer and staff member of the RCC for over 17 years. Hector’s efforts over the recent years have led to many significant achievements for the club that include major infrastructure improvements, new program development and expansion, and human resources management. All of these things have combined to raise the coaching and training quality at RCC to the highest level. The success of the club’s athletes over the last few years is a direct result of all of these efforts coming together.

“The impact that Hector has had on the Rideau Canoe Club has been absolutely remarkable,” said nominator, Tom Hoferek. “Since his daughters began paddling in 2003, Hector has time and again demonstrated a commitment to the club and the sport that is seldom seen anywhere. He is one of those special people whose impact and influence will be felt for many years to come.”

Hector leads by example by continually taking every opportunity to learn, seeking out ways to improve the club by attending workshops, webinars and training related to athlete development, coach development, organizational development, safe sport and bring that knowledge and best practices to the club.

Under Hector’s leadership as commodore, the club began its PaddleAll program in 2010. It continues to be an integral part of the RCC fabric.

CKC Coach Developer Award

The Coach Developer Award is presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties. Trevor L’Heureux of Eau Vive Verdun and Kayak Valleyfield, is a true paddling pioneer, generously donating his time to the sport he loves – and it shows.

“As a sport parent, I have seen many coaches over the last decade, but never have witnessed someone as true and passionate for a sport, as honest and caring as Trevor is,” said nominator, Natalie Franko.  “Trevor taught our son the techniques of paddling and the interpretation of different water/river aspects, but he also teaches him about the history of kayaking, telling stories and facts about the rivers and waters where they paddle.  Every lesson our son returns more passionate about kayaking then before.  Not only has Trevor successfully transmitted his passion and respect for the sport and nature, but he has done so with security and safety at the very core of each lesson.”

Trevor is an active member of the National Freestyle Committee and has been very involved in developing new coaches and instructors in the province of Quebec as well as leading the development of a Freestyle NCCP evaluation guide. In addition, Trevor is an ICF certified Freestyle Official and runs official training clinics.

Along with starting a new club (Eau Vive Verdun), Trevor developed and implemented free programming, adult courses and coached a small team of next generation freestyle paddlers.

Congratulations to our recipients of the 2020 CKC Excellence Awards.

Canoe Kayak Canada is pleased to launch the 2020 CKC Virtual Summit with a variety of informative sessions including Safe Sport, coaching development, and CKC award recognitions. Below is an update on the Summit activities taking place over the next few weeks.

• Annual Discipline meetings are being organizing by the Chairs of the Marathon and Whitewater Councils. Separate emails and meeting invitations either have or will be sent out shortly, with meeting dates.

• Annual Meeting of Sprint Discipline Members – November 21^st, 2020 (10:45 am to 12:30 pm – EST)

Further to previous communications, please register for this Sprint Members Meeting if you haven’t already done so. Please note that the agenda is now available by accessing the link below, and materials will be added in the lead up to the meeting.

Registration

Meeting Documents

• Special Meeting of CKC Members – November 21^st, (1:00 pm to 2:30 pm – EST)

Additionally, please find the registration and meeting documentation links for the Meeting of CKC Members below. The agenda for this meeting is now available and materials, including our Annual Update/Report will be available prior to the meeting.

Registration

Meeting Documents

• CKC Safe Sport Webinars

As part of our Virtual Summit, you will have received an update on CKC’s Safe Sport Policy along with a notice for a series of Webinars intended to provide an overview of the policy and how it will work for each Member. Please find the update here.

As a reminder, the dates for the Webinars are as follows;

• Club and Member Organization Webinar: November 19, 2020 – 7:30 PM EST
• Athlete Webinar: November 26, 2020 – 7:30 PM EST
• Club Webinar – Français: December 3, 2020 – 7:30 PM EST

• Sprint Competition Development NCCP Workshop

Canoe Kayak Canada will be piloting a sprint Competition Development workshop series in an online format with eight webinars being hosted with a blend of NCCP learning facilitators, expert guests and National Team coaches. Registration is currently at capacity for this workshop series but coaches that are interested in starting their competition development pathway may contact James Cartwright at jcartwright@canoekayak.ca for more details.

• National Coaches Meeting – November 24^th, (1:00 – 2:00 pm EST)

Canoe Kayak Coaches from across Canada are invited to attend the annual coaches meeting. Coaches who wish to attend this meeting are asked to register for this meeting here.

• Mental Health in Sport: Coaches Role – December 2nd (1- 2pm pm EST)

The COVID-19 Crisis has put further stain on the already difficult role that Coaches play in our CKC Community. CKC is offering this session led by Krista Van Slingerland, Executive Director of the Canadian Centre for Mental Health in Sport, which she has designed to increase coaches’ comfort and competency in noticing and addressing mental health concerns in athletes and themselves and promoting positive mental health through coaching practice. To Register for this session here.

• CKC 2020 Awards

CKC will be announcing two recipients for the annual Club Development and Coach Developer awards during the 2020 Summit. The Club Development Award will be presented to a coach, club leader or volunteer who has clearly demonstrated his or her abilities at developing a club or the sport through grassroots programs such as creating a new club or program or promoting the sport through the club. The Coach Developer Award will be presented to a coach who contributes to the training of new Canoe Kayak coaches outside of, or in addition to their regular coaching duties.

Nominations can be submitted online before end of day Sunday November 15.

Thanks for your attention to the above and please contact Laurel MacAdam at; lmacadam@canoekayak.ca if you have any immediate questions.

Canoe Kayak Canada is proud to announce four athletes have been confirmed to the Freestyle Squirt team to represent Canada at the 2021 ICF Freestyle World Championships. The Worlds competition will be held in Nottingham, England, scheduled for July 13^th to 17^th.

Matt Hamilton (Ontario), Ian Thomson (Ontario), and Marc Richard (Nova Scotia) were selected to the Men’s team. Darlene Fair (British Columbia) was named to the Women’s team.

Team Trials were held virtually this year in early October, with rides being judged by the selection committee through video submission. Trevor L’Heureux served as the Canadian Freestyle Head Judge for the online trials. Lee Vincent, CKC Freestyle Committee Chair, and James Cartwright, CKC High Performance Manager, rounded out the selection committee.

“We are thrilled to be nominating these four athletes to our 2021 Freestyle World Championships team,” Commented James Cartwright. “2020 has been a challenging year for everyone and despite this we have been able to develop and implement a creative selection mechanism that avoids unnecessary travel and keeps our athletes safe. I want to congratulate the paddlers for their selection to team Canada and I wish them all their best preparations for the 2021 Worlds.”

More information about the Freestyle Squirt team can be found here.

Photo credit: Robyn Butler

CKC is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of CKC alumnus and Olympic coach, Jim Mossman. Jim coached Canada’s National Canoe teams at the 1960, 1964, 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games. He was a ground-breaking coxswain, recognized as one of the best of his generation in the back of a war canoe. He was also a leader in the advancement of coaching, being a founding member of the Coaches Association of Canada and was the second recipient of the R. Edgar Gilbert Award in the Coach category in 1983. Mossman was Commodore at the Balmy Beach Canoe Club, and dedicated over 60 years to the sport, a contribution recognized through the Jim Mossman Trophy, which is presented to the winners of U16 Women C-15 at the Sprint National Championships.

We offer our sincere condolences to Jim’s family, friends and our paddling community.

Read full obituary

BBCC tribute