The 2024 Paddle Australia Canoe Polo National Championships will return to the Australian Capital Territory for the first time in 10 years this weekend, with teams from across Australia competing for titles in a range of categories.
As the premier event on the Australian Canoe Polo calendar, the event will run from Friday 29-Sunday 31 March at Molonglo Reach.
Welcoming athletes aged 12-73, the Canoe Polo National Championships will be proudly co-hosted by Burley Griffin Canoe Club and Canoe Polo ACT and will also act as a selection event for the 2024 World Championships set to take place later this year in Deqing, China.
For Event Director and local defending champion Laura Kleinrahm, a return to Canberra is a welcome move.
“The ACT last hosted the Championships exactly a decade ago so it’s very exciting to have the event coming back to us, especially as we’ve had a lot of growth over the last 10 years in the Canoe Polo space,” said Kleinrahm.
“It’s a big event this year, we’re sitting at about 140 athletes which is massive and we’ve got a couple of junior teams as well as a new division called Grandmasters for over 55’s.
“We’ve got teams and players coming from Brisbane, Adelaide, Hobart and everywhere in between, so it’ll be great to welcome everyone to our little corner of the world,” she said.
Playing in one of the two Canberra Open women’s teams, Kleinrahm is excited to hit the water against strong opposition.
“The competition is going to be tough this year, we’ll have to wait and see what our odds look like when the competition starts, but it is exciting to be going in as defending champions and as hosts too,” she said.
“There are some amazing women who have returned to the sport recently who will be competing this weekend.
“As well as being very exciting for the sport more generally, the extra players will make for an exciting and competitive Championships too.
The event will begin with a round-robin style competition before finals take place on Sunday afternoon across all divisions.
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