Latest News

Date Article
18 Jun 2013 Resignation of Professor Keith Lyons from AC board
16 Jun 2013 'Greatest moment of my life racing in that final'
13 Jun 2013 Important information about your AC Log Book
10 Jun 2013 Introducing the Aussie Wildwater Team
6 Jun 2013 Dangerous flooding in Prague
6 Jun 2013 Nominations open for 2014 SAHOF scholarship and mentoring program
24 May 2013 June sprint selection race
 

Resignation of Professor Keith Lyons from AC board


Keith Lyons
Rosalyn Lawrence, Tuesday, 18 June 2013

Australian Canoeing director Professor Keith Lyons has tendered his resignation from the board due to family matters.

Australian Canoeing director Professor Keith Lyons has tendered his resignation from the board due to family matters. Keith will be relocating and spending time with his family over the next few months. Danielle Woodward OAM, (President, Australian Canoeing) has reluctantly accepted Keith’s resignation from the board.

According to Woodward “Keith’s ability to easily comprehend and resolve complex matters will be sadly missed. He provided a wonderful balance to the Board through his thought provoking nature and high intelligence. There is no doubt that Australian Canoeing is a far better organisation from his involvement.”

Keith has been involved in teaching physical education, human movement studies and sport studies since he graduated from Loughborough College of Education in 1975. Keith has a special interest in the use of educational technology in teaching, coaching and learning and has completed a PhD at the University of Surrey.

Keith has been the Coordinator for the Performance Analysis Unit at the Australian Institute of Sport as well as Head of the Department of Biomechanics and Performance Analysis. As well as lecturing at a number of universities in the UK Keith became the Professor of Sport Studies at the University of Canberra in 2009, the year in which he also became the founding director of the National Institute of Sport Studies.

As such Keith has a wealth of knowledge, insight and experience which he has shared in his position with Australian Canoeing over the years. Keith first moved to Australia in 2002 and coached Australian canoe slalom athletes for a number of years. More recently his work has been focused on “the opportunities the social web provides to share and explore ideas in teaching, coaching and learning.”

Australian Canoeing extends its best wishes to Keith and his family. His presence and contributions will certainly be missed but AC looks forward to seeing Keith amongst the canoeing community in the future.

 

'Greatest moment of my life racing in that final'


Rob McIntyre
Australian Canoeing, Sunday, 16 June 2013

Robert McIntyre has stepped up to a new level of competition and made his first World Championship final in Solkan, Slovenia.

McIntyre put down a sharp qualification first run time of 62.64 seconds which was the 7th fastest time of the qualification. 

The competition in the K1M final was tough, the pace was set early by 10th fastest qualifier Richard Hala from the Czech Republic with a sharp time of 62.26 seconds.  Robert McIntyre was fast at the top of the course with the 6th fastest split but faltered slightly on the bouncy whitewater towards the end of the course which saw him finish with a time of 63.63 and ultimately place 12th.  Afterwards he was still ecstatic about the result and was happy to be in the final mixing it with the best.The 20 year old has improved considerably on his 29th position at last year’s world champs.

“A couple of tiny errors probably cost me a few more ranks but I could not be happier. Greatest moment of my life racing in that final”

McIntyre partly attributes his success to his well planned season.

“coming to Europe to train and compete one month before the race is really paying dividends.”  

Reigning world champion Nejc Znidarcic ultimately took the lead with 3 paddlers left with a time of 62.10 seconds and held that until the last run to be made by the Olympic Flatwater Sprint kayaker Maxime Richard from Belguim.  In an exciting final run Maxime clinched the world championship with a blistering run of 61.50.

The World Wildwater Sprint Championships commenced on Friday. The previous evening saw the opening ceremony in the town square of Solkan where some 180 athletes representing 21 nations gathered.  After the welcoming speeches from local and ICF dignitaries the athletes and local crowd were treated to entertainment from local dance companies.

Competition commenced on day 1 with the preliminary rounds of the men's C2 and women’s K1. In the woman's K1 Australian women Kristy Packham and Maddie Batters were in action.  Kristy came away 21st with a time of 73.88 seconds while Maddie who is still a Junior in her first ever international competition placed 25th with a time of 75.61.  Both girls said they were happy with their runs.  Great Britain's Hannah Brown was the fastest place getter in the heats with a blistering time of 67.4.

The finals were held later in the evening under lights in what proved to be a spectacular setting with a great crowd amassed to cheer on the competitors. The finals commenced with the C2 men in what the locals hoped would be a trifecta of Slovenian paddlers, having completed the preliminary rounds placed one, two and three. Unfortunately it was not to be the case with the Czech Republic team taking the bronze, but to the delight of the local crowd the Slovenian's finished in first and second place.

The women's final was an exciting event with the young gun Melanie Mathys from Switzerland, the ninth seed setting the early pace for everyone to catch with a time of 68.95 seconds. The former Junior
World champion held that first place right up to the last run by Hannah Brown from Great Britain who withstood the pressure to prevail with a victory in the time of 68.13 seconds. Third place was rounded
out by the French competitor and European champion Sixtine Malaterre in a time of 69.08 seconds.

Day 2 of the event saw the C1W, K1M and C1M. Australian K1M competitor Thomas Mountney finished in 26th place with a time of 64.97 seconds closely followed by Alex McIntyre in 32nd place in 65.34 seconds.

The C1M was taken out by Normen Weber (Germany) in a time of 68.05, followed by Guillaune Alzingre (France) and Blaz Cof (Slovenia) who also races internationally in slalom.

Some familiar names found themselves on the podium in the C1W, with the 1st and 2nd place winners from last year’s sprint World Championships repeating their performances.  Marjolene Hecquet of France took the win for the second year in a row, with a time of 76.77 seconds in front of teammate Julie Paoletti and Switzerland’s Sabine Eichenberger.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s results with Tom Mountney and Alex and Rob McIntyre looking to build on their individual performances in the teams event.
 

Other Links
 Results
 Rob McIntyre's Blog
 Event Website
 

Important information about your AC Log Book

Sam Lyons, Thursday, 13 June 2013

The Australian Canoeing log book feature will cease to operate on 1st August.

Australian Canoeing will be terminating the education log book feature. This is due to limited take up of the service and our desire to put our efforts in to other areas of our website provision.

When AC first launced our log book feature in 2005, there were limited options to store log books in the "cloud". This has now changed, and there are a large number of options out there. We recommend you move your data to Google Drive although Microsoft and Apple both have equivelant services.

A template logbook can be viewed and downloaded here and the rquirements for a logbook can be seen here.

We apologise for any inconvenience that this may cause but we look forward to providing you with imporved services in other areas in the future.

The last date to transfer data is the 1st August 2013.

Visit your log book

Other Links
 Visit your log book
 

Introducing the Aussie Wildwater Team


Australian Wildwater Team
Rosalyn Lawrence, Monday, 10 June 2013

The World Championships in wildwater sprint start this Friday. Read about our talented team here.

What do a landscaper, a nurse, a year 12 student and a future marine scientist all have in common? They will all be representing Australia at the 2013 Wildwater Sprint World Championships in Solkan, Slovenia, starting this Friday.

Rob McIntyre aims to improve on his result from last year and make the final. His brother Alex McIntyre has recovered from an operation and is fighting fit and rearing to go. For Madeline Batters this will be her first World Championship, but her experience and fitness from racing in flatwater sprint and marathon will stand her in good stead. After doing 80% of his training at home all alone Tom Mountney will feel a boost on the water from training and travelling with the team. Kristy Packham has been training hard since last year’s World Championships and will be a force to be reckoned with on the physically demanding waters of the Soca river.

Read the profiles of our team below, we asked them about their training and goals for the tour, as well as life outside sport.

 

Name: Thomas Mountney
Age: 18
Nickname: Tom

Previous results: 

- 24th Junior Worlds Championships, 2011

- 2012  U/18 national champion

- 3rd in open men’s at 2013 national championships. 

How is your preparation for this year’s World Champs going? What are your goals for the tour?

Preparation has been going well. I have been doing 80% of training alone which is never easy! I recently achieved a pb time on the upper Mersey in Tassie which is a real boost prior to departing. As this is my first senior tour my ultimate goal is to gain further experience at an international level and gain experience on a variety of rivers in Europe. 

Tell us about your life outside sport, do you work, study, or have any crazy hobbies?

I am currently having a gap year and have deferred studying marine science until next year. Until now I have been working on a fish farm which has been a valuable experience and good money! Outside of work and paddling I enjoy mtb, surfing, water skiing and fishing. 

What’s your favorite river to paddle on?

Hard to say living in Tassie, I don't really have a favourite! 

If you could go for a paddle with anybody in the world, who would you pick?

Probably Evan Garcia, I really enjoy watching his videos of creeking all around the world. I envy his lifestyle! 

Do you participate in any other paddling disciplines?

The odd flat water and slalom race. 

When and where did you first start paddling?

In about 2007 when I started at Devonport High School. Teacher Bruce Cameron introduced me to the sport at the Forth River slalom course. 

 

Name: Kristy Packham
Age: 32
Nickname: De

Previous results: 25th, World Championships, France, 2012

What have you been doing since the World Championships last year?
Since worlds last year I have started racing adventure races in Australia which has helped me get super fit for this year’s World Champs.

How is your preparation for this year’s World Champs going? What are your goals for the tour?
I would love to make top 15 which I think is a realistic goal given the course is suited to my flat water racing skills.

Tell us about your life outside sport, do you work, study, or have any crazy hobbies?
I am a full time nurse working in palliative care and in my spare Time I train 6 days week on the water, gym 3 times a week and hit the trails for some good 10km runs.

What’s your favorite river to paddle on?
I always love the Mersey in Tassie such a beautiful part of Australia.

Do you participate in any other paddling disciplines?
Race flat water and am keen to race K2 at Australian marathon titles with my twin sister.

When and where did you first start paddling?
I came from a canoe polo background when I was 15. In between I have had 10 yrs off canoeing completely and have only comeback to the sport 4 years ago.

 

Name: Madeline Batters
Age: 18
Nickname: Maddie/Madz

How is your preparation for this year’s World Champs going?  What are your goals for the tour? Preparation is going well, looking forward to the challenge and experience. My goal is to do my best and learn from the experience. 

Tell us about your life outside sport, do you work, study, or have any crazy hobbies? In Year 12

What’s your favorite river to paddle on? I haven't paddled on that many, but I like the Mersey in Tasmania and the Goulburn at Eildon. 

Do you participate in any other paddling disciplines? Flatwater Sprint and Marathon, used to do Slalom.

When and where did you first start paddling? Lake Weeroona, Bendigo

 

Name: Rob McIntyre
Age: 20
Nickname: helmet head (got that from the surf club boys for wearing one in ski races)

Previous results:
- 34th classic World Championships, 2012
- 16th World Cup, Bosnia, 2012
- 2x Australian rapid sprint champion 2011 & 2013 and
- 2011 classic national champion
- 3rd in recent German qualification event.

What have you been doing since the World Championships last year? A variety of paddling across all disciplines trying to improve my overall technique.

How is your preparation for this year’s World Champs going? What are your goals for the tour? I flew over to Europe six weeks prior to the up-and-coming World Championships to race different events (European Championships, German/Swiss Championships and German qualification). My main goal is to make the final 15 at the worlds. 

Tell us about your life outside sport, do you work, study, or have any crazy hobbies? I do bits and pieces to get me by, no full-time job. I enjoy surfing and bodyboarding when the waves are good.

What’s your favorite river to paddle on? Probably Soca. It's so scenic and the fact it's a great Wildwater course makes it even better

If you could go for a paddle with anybody in the world, who would you pick? Max Hoff. He's been a champ in Wildwater and now Sprint, super athlete!

Do you participate in any other paddling disciplines? Sprint, Surf Ski and try to do some creeking whenever I can.

When and where did you first start paddling? Probably in the front of a topo duo driven by Dad at either Goolang creek or the Barrington river at age 5. Started Wildwater at 14.

 

Name: Alex McIntyre
Age: 22
Nickname: My nickname is Allan.

Previous results: Last year at the World Cup in Banja Luka rapid sprint I achieved 23rd.

What have you been doing since the World Championships last year? Since last year’s World Cup I have recovered from an operation and been working hard to get on top of it and have been putting in the training leading up to the World Championships.

What are your goals for the tour? I feel I have had a really good preparation and am feeling fit and confident in the kayak.  My goal for the tour would be to finish top 20 every race I go in making sure I put in 100% effort every time.

Tell us about your life outside sport, do you work, study, or have any crazy hobbies? I am a landscaper during the day and when 3.30 hits I go to one of the many different training sessions I attend.

What’s your favorite river to paddle on? Nymboida River, NSW, Australia

If you could go for a paddle with anybody in the world, who would you pick? Steve Fisher

Do you participate in any other paddling disciplines? Surf ski paddling, creeking, flat water kayaking and a little bit of play boating when I get the chance.

When and where did you first start paddling? First started paddling when I was a toddler in the double Eskimo Topoduo.

Other Links
 Wildwater Worlds Website
 Rob McIntyre's Blog
 World Champs Program
 Results will be displayed here

Madeline Batters

Rob McIntyre

Alex McIntyre

Kristy Packham

Thomas Mountney
 

Dangerous flooding in Prague


Flooding at slalom World Championship venue
Rosalyn Lawrence, Thursday, 6 June 2013

ICF statement in response to the recent floods at the 2013 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championship venue in Prague.

Simon Toulson, ICF General Secretary, said:


"We are waiting for further reports on the venue once the waters have subsidded. Then we can assess the damage and the impact on the World Championships.  The local organisers have assured us that they will do everything within their power to ensure that the event will go ahead. They have also been promised additional support from the Government and city of Prague.”


“In the event that the Championships are not held suitable contingency plans are being made, hopefully these will not need to be activated.“


The event is scheduled for the 11th -15th September 2013.

 

Nominations open for 2014 SAHOF scholarship and mentoring program


Rosalyn Lawrence, Thursday, 6 June 2013

Australian Junior Athletes (U/21) are invited to apply for The Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship & Mentoring Program for 2014.

The Sport Australia Hall of Fame (SAHOF) is an organisation which recognises Australia’s greatest sporting achievers, thereby preserving and celebrating the history of Australian sport and inspiring the next generation of sportapeople.

Applications are now open for the SAHOF Scholarship and Mentoring Program, which provides 12 months of encouragement and funding, including mentoring from a SAHOF member, valued at over $10, 000. Applications close 5pm Friday 19th July, 2013.

The program’s sponsors Etihad Airways and Victoria University assist SAHOF in providing 5 scholarship holders with:

·        Personal Mentoring by a SAHOF Member

·        $5,000 sporting expenses grant

·        On-stage presentation of Scholarship & Certificate at The SAHOF Induction & Awards Gala Dinner – 10th October, Crown Palladium, Melbourne (travel costs met by SAHOF)

·        One return flight within the Etihad Airways network

·        Assigned SAHOF Scholarship Holder logo for agreed use

 

Scholarships apply from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. Australian athletes aged under 21 as at Dec 31, 2013 are eligible.

The program was first introduced in 2006, and since then scholarship holders have been privileged to be mentored by Australian sporting legends such as Catherine Freeman, Susie O’Neill, Rechelle Hawkes, David Parkin, Robert de Castella, Bruce McAvaney,  Nick Farr-Jones, Andrew Gaze, Liz Ellis, Mick Doohan and SAHOF Chairman, John Bertrand.

Last year canoe slalom Olympic Silver medalist Jessica Fox was nominated for SAHOF’s Don award

Please see below for the nomination form.

Other Links
 nomination form
 SAHOF website
 

June sprint selection race


sprint selection
Rosalyn Lawrence, Friday, 24 May 2013

To enter this event click the 'entries' link below.

Regatta: June Selection Event
Date: 21/6/2013 - 23/6/2013
Venue: Sydney International Regatta Centre, NSW
Entries Open:  No
Entries Close:  7/6/2013 @ 24:00 AEST (Local Time Zones)
Entry Fees:  Senior: $75.00   Junior: $50.00

NOTES:

1) This is a selection event first and formost. Non-selection athletes may enter however, your entry will be conditional on there being an available space in the race.

2) All athletes must enter K1 or C1 race. 

3) Team boats recommendations are to be submitted by coaches only for the Selection Panel to approve to sprint@canoe.org.au. This must be in by close of entries.

Other Links
 Entries
 Event info