2023 Selection Panels – Update
With new appointments within the Canoe Slalom High Performance & Performance Pathway, there have been a few changes on the 2023 Canoe Slalom Selection Panels.
Junior Team Selection Panel
- Peter Eckhardt (Chair) (PACSLTC Member)
- Louise Natoli (Ex-Elite Athlete)
- Rosalyn Lawrence (Performance Pathways Program Lead)
U23 Team Selection Panel
- Kim Crane (Chair) (High Performance Director)
- Sue Natoli (International Judge & PACSLTC Member)
- Kynan Maley (Ex-Elite Athlete)
- Rosalyn Lawrence (Performance Pathways Program Lead)
Senior Team Selection Panel
- Kim Crane (Chair) (High Performance Director)
- Sue Natoli (International Judge & PACSLTC)
- Kynan Maley (Ex-Elite Athlete)
- Robin Jeffery (Previous High Performance Coach)
2023 Canoe Slalom Team Selection Polices
Following the 2022 Canoe Slalom Team selection process, Paddle Australia has completed a review process.
The review undertaken reviewed the 2022 selection process, selection policies, and the 2023 selection events. Recommendations from the review have been taken into consideration, in the development of the 2023 Canoe Slalom Team Selection Polices.
Paddle Australia has ambitious goals of winning medals at major international competitions, including the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
An important part of the high-performance strategy is the selection of athletes who have demonstrated the ability to perform on the international stage. This is with the intention to provide Australia with the best chance of achieving success at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Essentially the objective of selection, is to ensure we select the right athletes, to the right events, to allow them to perform at the right time.
The 2023 Canoe Slalom Team Selection polices have been developed in conjunction with the National Canoe Slalom Coaches, Canoe Slalom Selection Panels, and been endorsed by the Paddle Australia Canoe Slalom Technical Committee (PACSLTC) and athlete representatives.
Below is information regarding updates to the selection policies, dates for the selection events, and international races that athletes are being selected for.
2023 Canoe Slalom Team – Athlete Eligibility & Nomination
Athlete Eligibility
For athletes to be eligible for the 2023 Team Selection they must meet criteria outlined in Paddle Australia’s Selection Procedures Bylaws which can be found on the Paddle Australia website HERE
One of the eligibility criteria which all nominated athletes must meet is regarding the Australian Authority’s requirement to have up to date Covid-19 vaccinations, which outlined below.
- 1.7. be double vaccinated against Covid-19 with a vaccine approved by the relevant Australian authority, including any up-to-date boosters as required. This is to help ensure compliance with any restrictions or limitations imposed from time to time on airline and other travel, relevant insurance and on state and international border crossings. Accordingly, athletes must provide evidence of a Covid-19 vaccine certificate, or a vaccine passport, at the time of nomination as required under clause 7.1.
At the time of entering the event through Paddle Australia’s Go Membership’s system. you will be required to upload your Covid-19 vaccination certificate which meets the criteria above.
Athlete team Nomination Process
All athletes who wish to nominate for the 2023 Canoe Slalom Team will be required to ‘tick a box’ at the time of entering for the event.
By ticking this box, you are nominating for ALL 2023 Canoe Slalom Teams that you are eligible for according to your age.
There will be three (3) ranking lists, Junior, U23 & Senior, which will include all nominated athletes that are eligible as per their age.
2023 Canoe Slalom Selection Event Format
The details of the 2023 Canoe Slalom Selection Event format are as follows:
- Penrith Open, Penrith, NSW            11 – 12 February           JNR, U23, SNR
The Penrith Open will consist of a total of two (2) runs for all paddlers. These will be a Heat run which will qualify for either the Final A or Final B
- Australian Open, Penrith, NSW            17 – 19 February            JNR, U23, SNR
The Australian Open will be run as per the World Cup competition progression process with a minimum of two (2) runs.
The first run will be the Heats which will qualify for the semi-final or the invitational semi-final. The semi-final will qualify for the Final and Invitational final if required.
2023 Junior Team Selection Policy
Ranking Point Opportunities
Following the success of the 2022 Junior Team where the Canoe Slalom Program returned home with a World Champion in the MC1 class along with a number of PBs from other junior team athletes, it is exciting to see the bright future of Canoe Slalom as the Performance program head towards Brisbane 2032.
To keep consistency with the 2022 Junior Team selection process, the 2023 Junior Team Selection policy offers four (4) opportunities to race for ranking points – with the best two (2) being used for selection rankings.
The selection trials used to race for ranking points at the selection competitions are outlined below:
- Trial 1a: Penrith Open              Heat 1
- Trial 1b: Penrith Open            Final Result
- Trial 2a: AUS Open                  Heat 1
- Trial 2b: AUS Open                  Final Result
Minimum Performance Standards (MPS)
In order fulfill Paddle Australia’s High-Performance mission of continued success at benchmark events (BME), the MPS is seen as a critical step in achieving this, and therefore will remain in the selection philosophy until the next review for the LA 2028 quadrennial.
As stated in previous and current team selection polices, all team nominated athletes have a minimum of four (4) and maximum of five (5) opportunities to make MPS.
These opportunities to achieve MPS are outlined below:
Guaranteed Opportunities:
- Heat 1 Penrith Open
- Final B / Final A Penrith Open
- Heat 1 Aus Open
- Invitational Semi-final or Official Semi-final Aus Open
Additional Opportunities:
- Invitational Final or Official Final* Aus Open
*If an athlete’s time from the invitational semi-final would qualify them for the official final, then they will be invited into the invitational final.
2023 U23 Team Selection Criteria
Ranking Point Opportunities
For the U23 Selection policy there are three (3) opportunities to achieve ranking points – with the best two (2) being used for selection rankings, which is consistent with previous years, and these are outlined below:
- Trial 1b: Penrith Open            Final Result
- Trial 2a: AUS Open                  Heat 1
- Trial 2b: AUS Open                  Final Result
Minimum Performance Standards (MPS)
In order fulfill Paddle Australia’s High-Performance mission of continued success at benchmark events (BME), the MPS is seen as a critical step in achieving this, and therefore will remain in the selection philosophy until the next review for the LA 2028 quadrennial.
As stated in previous and current team selection polices, all team nominated athletes have a minimum of four (4) and maximum of five (5) opportunities to make MPS.
These opportunities to achieve MPS are outlined below:
Guaranteed Opportunities:
- Heat 1 Penrith Open
- Final B / Final A Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Penrith Open
- Heat 1 Aus Open
- Invitational Semi-final or Official Semi-final            Aus Open
Additional Opportunities:
- Invitational Final or Official Final* Aus Open
*If an athlete’s time from the invitational semi-final, would qualify them for the official final, then they will be invited into the invitational final.
2023 World Cup/World Championships Team Selection Criteria
Ranking Point Opportunities
For the World Cup/World Championships Selection policy there are three (3) opportunities to achieve ranking points – with the best two (2) being used for selection rankings, which is consistent with previous years, and these are outlined below:
- Trial 1b: Penrith Open            Final Result
- Trial 2a: AUS Open                  Heat 1
- Trial 2b: AUS Open                  Final Result
Minimum Performance Standards (MPS)
In order fulfill Paddle Australia’s High-Performance mission of continued success at benchmark events (BME), the MPS is seen as a critical step in achieving this, and therefore will remain in the selection philosophy until the next review for the LA 2028 quadrennial.
As stated in previous and current team selection polices, all team nominated athletes have a minimum of four (4) and maximum of five (5) opportunities to make MPS.
These opportunities to achieve MPS are outlined below:
Guaranteed Opportunities:
- Heat 1 Penrith Open
- Final B / Final A Penrith Open
- Heat 1 Aus Open
- Invitational Semi-final or Official Semi-final Aus Open
Additional Opportunities:
- Invitational Final or Official Final* Aus Open
*If an athlete’s time from the invitational semi-final would qualify them for the official final, then they will be invited into the invitational final.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Below outlines a summary of the 3 selection streams available for selection to the 2023 World Cup and World Championships Team.
It is strongly recommended that you refer to the 2023 World Cup & World Championships Team selection policy (link below) for further details on each of these streams.
Stream 1 – Early Pre-Selection
Early pre-selection is to recognise individuals who achieve a podium (top 3) result at International Benchmark Events (World Championships and Olympic Games) and to support continued Benchmark Event success.
Stream 2 – Automatic Selection
Automatic selection is when an athlete is ranked in the Top 1, 2, or 3 places as outlined in clause 4.1 of the policy AND these athletes must have achieved at least 1 x Senior MPS (or U25 MPS for eligible Athletes aged 25 years or younger).
Stream 3 – Discretionary Selection
Under clause 4.2.7 the Selection Panel, at their absolute discretion, may select additional athletes in Events up to the maximum number of quota places awarded to Australia (3) by the ICF, following the discretionary clause outlined in the selection policy.
World Cup Development Opportunity
World Cup 3 – Ljubljana, SLOVENIA
Paddle Australia’s High Performance program recognises the need to offer international competition opportunities such as World Cups to future elite athletes who achieve a suitably high standard of performance at domestic selection.
These opportunities are identified to provide early exposure and experience to athlete’s at the senior elite level within the international Canoe Slalom system.
Therefore in 2023, there will be the opportunity for future elite athletes with performances that show a trajectory for potential Paris 2024 success – as shown by achieving an age related minimum performance standard as stated below, to be selected as the third boat to compete at World Cup 3 in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
- The remaining allocations up to the maximum quota positions available for Australia will be subject to fulfilling the following criteria in order:
- The highest ranked U21 athlete who has not already been selected for World Cups 1, 2, 4, 5, or World Championships and has achieved at least 1 x U23 MPS
- The highest ranked U23 athlete who has not already been selected for World Cups 1, 2, 4, 5, or World Championships and has achieved at least 1 x U25 MPS
- The highest ranked U18 athlete who has not already been selected for World Cups 1, 2, 4, 5, or World Championships and has achieved at least 1 x U21 MPS
- The highest ranked athlete who has not already been selected for World Cups 1, 2, 4, 5, or World Championships and has achieved at least 1 x SNR MPS
2023 World Cup & World Championships dates and locations
2023 World Cups
- World Cup 1 (2 – 4 June. Augsburg, GER)
- World Cup 2 (9 – 11 June. Prague, CZE)
- World Cup 3 (16 – 18 June. Ljubliana-Tacen, SLO)
- World Cup 4 (1 – 3 September. La Seu, ESP)
- World Cup Final (5 – 8 October. Vaires Sur Marne, Paris, FRA)
2023 Junior & U23 World Championships Â
- Location: Krakow, POL
- Official Training: 9 – 14 August
- Competition: 15 – 20 August
2023 Senior World Championships  Â
- Location: Lee Valley, London, UK
- Official Training Camp 1: 22 – 26 May
- Official Training Camp 2: 6 – 10 September
- Official Training: 12 – 18 September
- Competition: 19 – 24 September
2023 Team Selection policies
To view the Canoe Slalom Selection Policies in full, please refer to the Paddle Australia website, through the below links:
2023 PA Canoe Slalom Junior Team Selection Policy
2023 PA Canoe Slalom U23 Team Selection Policy
2023 PA Canoe Slalom Senior Selection Policy
