The stage is set for first International Canoe Federation Canoe Sprint World Cup of the season with compelling stories poised to unfold over the coming days.
Paddlers from across the planet have come together in Szeged, Hungary eager to make flying starts to their campaigns.
Running from May 8 to 10, the World Cup opener will see Olympic and world champions go head-to-head for the biggest prizes.
With one day to go until the World Cup gets underway, the ICF picks out five things to watch from the thrilling sprint programme.
Click here for live schedule and results from Szeged
1. Race to LA28 begins as participation increases
Beyond the pursuit of international medals, there is another major incentive for paddlers as they set their sights on LA28.
This competition will be the first World Cup to count as an Olympic Ranking event, meaning athletes will have an opportunity to earn crucial points for their respective country.
This nation-based approach is designed to intensify rivalries and maintain fierce competition across the full qualification period which runs until the end of 2027.
National Federations across all five continents have responded to the launch of the Olympic qualification system by sending paddlers to Szeged.
A total of 684 athletes representing 62 nations – an increase of almost 20 compared to last year – will compete in the Hungarian city.
China lead the standings in nine out of the 10 Olympic categories after a dominant display at the Asian Canoe Sprint Championships in Hefei last week.
The Chinese team will look to continue this momentum with reigning Olympic champions Bowen Ji and Mengya Sun lining up in Szeged.
2. Harrison returning to strengthen canoe field
After more than a year away from competition, Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medallist Nevin Harrison of the United States returns to the international stage.
Harrison arrives in Szeged having not competed since narrowly missing out on gold at Paris 2024.
“Scary” is how Harrison summed up her emotions heading into the World Cup, but her return adds another star name to the women’s canoe single line-up.
She is set to compete in the women’s C1 200m where she will come up against the likes of reigning Olympic champion Katie Vincent of Canada, 2023 world champion Yarisleidis Cirilo Duboys of Cuba and reigning world champion Liudmyla Luzan of Ukraine.
Another paddler to watch in that category is Spain’s Viktoria Yarchevska who stunned the field to win gold in Szeged last year.
3. Kopasz headlines Hungarian team
Twelve months ago, Hungary enjoyed a stellar home World Cup, winning 20 medals including seven golds to top the medal table.
The Hungarian paddlers will be looking to make home advantage count again as they bring a 48-strong squad.
Among those is reigning world champion Balint Kopasz who withstood a stunning performance from South Africa’s Hamish Lovemore to win men’s kayak single 1000m gold in Szeged last time out.
Compatriot Adam Varga will look to challenge Kopasz for the title along with Lovemore and the likes of Australia’s Thomas Green and Portugal’s Fernando Pimenta who both got on the podium at the 2025 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Milan.
Agnes Anna Kiss and Bianka Nagy made a big impact in the 2025 season, collecting a number of World Cup golds, and will aim to dazzle again in the women’s canoe double and women’s canoe four.
The Hungarian team also features speedster Kolos Csizmadia, kayak double pair Levente Kurucz and Bence Nadas and kayak ace Zsoka Csikos who were all crowned world champions in 2025.
4. Germany’s golden quartet reunited
There was a new look to the German men’s kayak four team last season with Anton Winkelmann added to the boat.
Winkelman joined forces with Olympic champions Max Rendschmidt, Max Lemke and Jacob Schopf.
He took place of Tom Liebscher-Lucz who helped to guide Germany to three successive K4 gold medals at the Olympic Games.
This season, Liebscher-Lucz is back. With Winkelmann deciding to end his competitive career at the age of just 22, Liebscher-Lucz returns to the fold and rejoins Rendschmidt, Lemke and Schopf.
After missing out on a medal at the World Championships, Germany will be determined to bounce back in 2026.
Portugal will take to the start line as the world champions, while Hungary and Spain will also be among the contenders for the K4 crown in Szeged.
5. Can Luzan and Pulawska pick up from where they left off?
Two of the biggest stars of 2025 were Ukraine’s Liudmyla Luzan and Poland’s Anna Pulawska.
Luzan captured four world titles in the canoe last year, while Pulawska dazzled in Milan with two kayak gold medals.
Pulawska was unstoppable in the women’s K1 500m in 2025, triumphing at the World Cups in Szeged and Poznan before clinching the world crown.
In the C1, Luzan starred over 200m and 500m and formed a fantastic partnership with Iryna Fedoriv to seal women’s C2 200m and women’s C2 500m titles in Milan.
This weekend, Luzan will link back up with Anastasiia Rybachok – a double act that has achieved plenty of success in the past, winning Olympic silver medals at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 and world gold in 2021.
Full coverage of the ICF Canoe Sprint World Cups can be viewed on the Planet Canoe YouTube channel.
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