There’s plenty of excitement building in Nigeria, where the sport of canoe slalom is really starting to take off.

The International Canoe Federation has been in Nigeria this month conducting its very first development program, and the signs for the future are very promising.

Through the support of the Nigeria Rowing Canoeing Sailing Federation, ICF expert Max Raux was also invited to the National Games, where canoe sprint was making its first appearance.

The development program in Nigeria was designed to evaluate what support the country needs to continue its cane slalom development. From this study, the ICF will develop a program for Nigeria in 2019 to help it achieve its goals.

Nigeria qualified two athletes for this year’s Youth Olympic Games in Argentina. Canoe slalom in the YOG format was a demonstration sport at the Nigerian National Games, with 36 paddlers competing from 12 different provinces.

There were 12 K1 men, 12 K1 women, and in an exciting development, 12 paracanoe paddlers also got to challenge themselves on the canoe slalom obstacle course.

The ongoing support of manufacturers Nelo and Bracsa made much of this possible. They provided K1 and C1 boats, and a set of 18 official YOG buoys.

The long-term goal is to have Nigerians compete at the Olympic Games, and to prepare the best young athletes for a shot at YOG glory when the event comes to the African continent in 2022.