With a season already full of success the Canoe Sprint team are in form and ready to take on the World to compete for medals at the Wold Championships in Poznan, Poland (19-22 August).
In the women’s team current WK1 1000m European Champion Rachel Cawthorn will be challenging for medals in both the women’s K1 1000m and 500m categories and the WK4 500m alongside crew mates Abigail Edmonds, Hayleigh Mason and Louisa Sawers. Team mate and European 5000m Champion Lani Belcher (21 year old) will be competing in the WK1 5000m. Jenna Hawkey and Angela Hannah will be racing in the women’s K2 1000m and 500m, and taking the K1 women’s 200m spot is 20 year old Olympian Jess Walker.
In the new Olympic discipline of 200m, the men’s team sees the current European Champions and Wold Cup gold medallists in the K2 200m Liam Heath and Jonathan Schofield, competing to add another title to their collection in the K2 200m. Fellow 200m athlete Ed McKeever also current European Champion in Trasona, Spain and World Cup winner, will be challenging the world to take top spot in the MK1 200m event.
Olympic Gold and Bronze Medallist from Beijing Tim Brabants, returns to the team after a year out to compete at his first Wold Championships since being crowned Olympic Champion, he will be racing in the MK1 5000m , 1000m, and 500m. Jon Boyton and Ed Rutherford will be teaming up to compete in the MK2 1000m and 500m, and the dynamic team of Ben Farrell, Andy Daniels, Paul Wycherley and Stuart Hastings will be racing together in the MK4 1000m.
After only two years in a canoe and coming through with quick development from the fast track programme, 23 year old Richard Jeffries will be competing in his first World Championship in the MC1 200m category. In the MC2 1000m James Train and Matt Lawrence who both train in Nottingham will be racing for Great Britain.
The fast and furious relay events will see Great Britain competing in the WK1 with a team of Cawthorn, Walker, Edmonds and Mason and a MK1 team of Mckeever, Cox, Schofield and Heath.
Brendan Purcell, National Performance Coach Comments:
“On the back of a successful Euro’s the team came home and have been preparing for the World Championships, the men’s 200m squad and the women have just come out of an excellent two week pre worlds train camp in Hungry. The team are all in good spirits and we are all really excited about the racing ahead.”
With the team in great shape and full of talent it is bound to be a World Championship full of excitement and action, as the team race it out to add more medals to their collections.
More information, startlists and results can be found at the official event website - http://www.kayak2010.com