The start of 2023 is flying by, and March was another exciting month for the Paddle Australia community.
The month started with the Paddle Australia Canoe Wildwater Championships in Penrith, which were a fantastic success. It was great to see the return of many familiar faces to the Penrith Whitewater Stadium, alongside some new faces as this discipline continues to grow.
The month was bookended with another national championships, the 2023 Paddle Australia Canoe Sprint Championships held at Champion Lakes in Perth from 21-25 March. With more than 250 paddlers in action, from the under 10s category all the way through to members of our Senior National Team, it was fantastic to bring together the diverse Sprint community for five days of fantastic racing in WA.Â
On the final day of competition, the Junior and U23 Australian Sprint teams, and Asia Pacific Cup team were provisionally announced at Champion Lakes following impressive performances at the championships. This month, we also announced our Canoe Slalom Senior, U23 and Junior Teams for the upcoming international seasons, as well as the Slalom National Development Squad, demonstrating the incredible talent and strength we have coming through our Slalom performance pathways at the moment. I’d like to congratulate all the athletes on their selection and wish them the very best of luck for their upcoming competitions.
Following on from last month’s ICF visit, we were all very excited to hear that Redlands City Council’s Birkdale Community Precinct Masterplan was adopted by council at this month’s meeting, which features plans for the exciting Redlands Whitewater Centre to be used for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games.
Off the water, we took the chance to recognise and celebrate the incredible females in our sport on International Women’s Day, and our senior athletes dedicated their time to Clean Up Australia Day initiatives around their local training waterways.
The domestic events season will continue next month, with Ocean Racing, SUP, Canoe Polo and Canoe Slalom national champions to be crowned in April. CLICK HERE to find out more about how you can get involved.
Until next month, and always, stay safe on our waterways.
Yours in paddling,
Phil Jones
Paddle Australia CEO
