ICF Wildwater Canoeing Committee activities Q4 2025

Season Review and Looking Ahead 

As the long 2025 wildwater racing season comes to an end, preparations for the upcoming season have already been in full swing for several months. Following the successful completion of the final international wildwater race in Europe in mid-November in Llangollen, the last ICF Wildwater Canoeing ranking event once again highlighted the strength and spirit of our athletes, organizers, and volunteers. Full event Report. 

Committee Work and Initiatives 

At the close of 2025, the ICF Wildwater Canoeing (WWC) Technical Committee finalised its development activities and strategic priorities for 2026. Several key elements were taken into consideration: 

• Maintaining development training camps for athletes competing at the highest level 
• Utilizing the newly-expanded boat arsenal for development initiatives, currently stored mainly in Czechia 
• Strengthening the coach development strategy 
• Advancing the ITO (International Technical Officials) development strategy

Planned Development Camps and Funding 

A dedicated funding package will be requested to support a development camp scheduled before and during the 2026 World Championships in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Additionally, a proposal has been made to organize a connecting development camp between the two World Cup competitions in Hungary and Slovakia. Early in 2026, detailed plans for both ICF Development Camps for athletes will be presented. Support has also been confirmed for the Paddle Europe Development Camp held alongside the European Junior and U23 Championships in Scotland in August 2026. An official grant application has already been submitted, and a selection timeline for coaches and athletes has been prepared. 

Wildwater Boat Arsenal 

At the end of September, the first development boat owned by the Czech Canoe Union was assigned to an athlete of Senegalese origin after consultation with the WWC Technical Committee. The boat was a K1, and its new user is Wally Youssouf Ndiaye, a Senegalese athlete who lives and trains at the Torcy Canoë-Kayak Club near Paris. The boat was loaned to him for training and competitions that await him next season.  

How is Wally training at the moment and what is he most looking forward to in the coming season? 

Alexandra: How are you? What about your off-season motivation? 
Wally: So I'm doing very well. I recently started working, so I'm trying to find a way to get the most out of my training sessions. Motivation is always difficult in winter, but I know that some people are training hard for Banja Luka (World Championships), so keep up the good work. 

Alexandra: It's a demanding period! The hardest part is balancing work, school, and training. Do you usually train alone, or do you have group training sessions? 
Wally: I like to exercise alone, but always in a group when I'm on the water. 

Alexandra: Okay! Fair enough! Are you always training on the new development ship, or on the old one? 
Wally: I only train on the development boat. It's quite different, but really fast, so I'm getting used to it. 

Alexandra: That’s good to hear! One last question for you, Wally, what is the main goal for you for the next season? 
Wally: To place in the top 30 in the sprint at the World Championships in Banja Luka! And maybe to race in sprint canoeing in Africa. I see they have a Continental Championships, so maybe I'll try to make it to the podium in the under-23 category. 

New Boat Arsenal Deployment in 2026 

It was confirmed that the new development focused boat arsenal will be used at both planned ICF development camps. The transport of the boats will be organized and financially covered through an ICF grant. 

Coach Development Initiative 

A strong emphasis has been placed on coach development for 2026. The ICF WWC Technical Committee has committed to taking a more active role in the education and long-term support of both current and future coaches. The first step in this initiative will be a series of online mini-seminars in January 2026, open to all individuals motivated to learn and engage with experts across various fields. These online sessions will be followed by in-person seminars during all three World Cup events. Future coaches will additionally have the opportunity to observe ICF Development coaches during training camps through coach shadowing. 

Here you can find all details 
https://www.canoeicf.com/disciplines/wildwater-canoeing/coaches-seminars 

By Manuela Gawehn, Chair of the ICF Wildwater Canoeing Committee