BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA (July 23, 2017) – Thirteen of Canada’s best young paddlers return home today after gaining a wealth of invaluable competitive experience at this year’s ICF Canoe Slalom Junior and U23 World Championships in Slovakia. The event allowed Team Canada to test their skills against top international competition as a stepping stone for later success at World Championships, Olympics and Paralympics.
“The race course in Bratislava is one of the most difficult artificial whitewater courses on the international circuit,” said James Cartwright, Canoe Kayak Canada’s High Performance Manager. “That’s what this tour was all about; giving the athletes the opportunity to train and race on artificial river facilities. I’m really thankful that we had the support of the provincial high performance coaches to make sure that our athletes learned as much as possible from this competition.”
Impressive Canadian performers included Lois Betteridge (Ottawa, ON) who qualified for the semi-finals in the U23 Women’s C-1. Narrowly missing out on the semis were Hannah Penner (Salaberry-De-Valleyfield, QC) who came 34th in the U23 Women’s K-1, and Keenan Simpson (Ottawa, ON) who finished 42nd in the Junior Men’s K-1.
Next up for Team Canada are the ICF Sprint Junior & U23 World Championships from July 27-30 in Pitești, Romania. Canada’s sprint team, which should be distinguished from the slalom team from this week’s competition, is looking to improve on last year’s performance, which saw the team bring home two medals.
You can view the full results of the 2017 ICF Canoe Slalom Junior and U23 World Championships by clicking here.
Canadian Results Summary
| Athlete | Event | Result |
| Lois Betteridge (Ottawa, ON) | C1W U23 | 29th
(Qualified for Semi-final) |
| Yannick Laviolette (St-Louis-de-Gonzague, QC) | C1M U23 | 46th |
| Liam Smedley (Dunrobin, ON) | C1M U23 | 54th |
| Benjamin Risk (Ottawa, ON) | C1M U23 | 45th |
| Lois Betteridge (Ottawa, ON) | K1W U23 | 47th |
| Kylie Zirk (Saskatoon, SK) | K1W U23 | 44th |
| Hannah Penner (Salaberry-De-Valleyfield, QC) | K1W U23 | 34th |
| Andrew Musgrave (Ottawa, ON) | K1M U23 | 54th |
| Trevor Boyd (Calgary, AB) | K1M U23 | 59th |
| Darius Ramrattan (Innisfail, AB) | K1M U23 | 74th |
| Sheamus O’Connell (Ottawa, ON) | K1M Junior | 79th |
| Keenan Simpson (Ottawa, ON) | K1M Junior | 42nd |
| Mael Rivard (Ottawa, ON) | K1M Junior | 55th |
| Jocelyn Taylor (Calgary, AB) | K1W Junior | 49th |
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 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:
James Cartwright
High Performance Manager
613.715 0727
jcartwright@canoekayak.ca