A record number of athletes will participate at the International Canoe Federation Canoe Marathon World Championships in Metkovic, Croatia.
A total of 532 paddlers from 40 countries will compete in the elite races as they seek to earn a quote spot at The World Games 2025 in Chengdu.
The competition will take place from September 19 to 22, with paddlers poised to battle it out over short-distance and long-distance in canoe and kayak.
Quota places for Chengdu 2025 will be up for grabs in K1, with 20 slots available in both the women’s and men’s competitions.
The first-placed boat from each continent in the men’s K1 long-distance and women’s K1 long-distance races will secure a quota for their respective National Federation.
A total of 11 quota spots will then be allocated to the best-ranked NFs not yet qualified in the long-distance races.
The third step in the qualification process will see three quota places allotted to the best-ranked NFs that had yet to qualify in the same class from the results of the short-distance races.
Denmark’s Mads Brandt Pedersen will be the favourite for the men’s K1 long-distance title as he bids to win it for the fourth time having emerged victorious in 2019, 2021 and 2023.
South Africa’s Andrew James Birkett, who won gold at The World Games 2022 and is a two-time world champion, will be aiming to get the better of Pedersen.
Hungary’s Vanda Kiszli is seeking to capture a sixth successive world title in the women’s K1 long-distance.
Sweden’s Melina Andersson took silver in both 2022 and 2023 and is expected to be Kiszli’s fiercest challenger in Metkovic.
Andersson overcame Kiszli to win the women’s K1 short-distance title in Vejen last year and will be looking to be crowned champion for a third successive time.
Another contender for medals is Hungary’s Emese Kohalmi who arrives off the back of winning two golds at last month’s ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Samarkand.
Kohalmi is the reigning women’s K2 world champion in Canoe Marathon and will team up with Zsoka Csikos in Metkovic.
South Africa’s Bridgitte Hartley, a bronze medallist in the K1 500 at the London 2012 Olympics, is also lining up in the women’s K1 short-distance.
Portugal’s Fernando Pimenta is another Olympic medallist in the field as he will contest the men’s K1 short distance as well as the men’s K2 with Jose Ramalho.
Pimenta is poised to lock horns again with Pedersen in the men’s K1 short distance.
The Portuguese paddler came out on top in 2022 and 2023 but lost their last meeting with Pederson capturing the men’s K1 5,000m title at the recent ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships.
Spain’s Manuel Antonio Campos will be setting his sights on more Canoe Marathon glory after capturing both the short-distance and long-distance crowns in C1 as well as the C2 title with Diego Romero last year.
Ukraine’s Liudmyla Babak will be seeking to tighten her grip on the women’s C1 long-distance crown as she bids to win it for the seventh straight time.
She will also be bidding to reclaim the women’s C1 short-distance crown after losing to Hungary’s Zsofia Nora Kisban last year.
Ruud Heijselaar, Chair of the ICF Canoe Marathon Committee, said:“Overall participation is more than ever and with 40 countries among the elite, this is the best we have ever had.
“All continents are present and the organisation is doing its utmost to have the best World Championships ever.
“Top competition with more than 50 paddlers in the K1 senior short distance is unprecedented.
“Also, there are qualifiers for the World Games in the senior men's and women's K1, so it will be a great battle for the 20 places in the men's and 20 in the women's that will be given away in the long distance on Saturday.
“All races are World Championship races with a large number of boats in canoe classes and we hope it will be the last year as a demonstration race for Para athletes.
“Let's hope next year we will have Paras as World Championship races.”
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