Category: Athlete Development

JDS Winter Skills Days 2024/25: Day 3 sign-up now open!

   12 January 2025    Athlete Development, Athletes, Coaching

The MRC, SRC and Paddle England Talent are pleased to announce that our third JDS winter series event is now open for booking. Please click HERE if you would like to book a spot. 

The event will be taking place at the National Watersports Centre in Nottingham. The day will be in K4s and will have a focus on introducing and developing race day processes, as well as supporting the development of crew boat skills. The day will be led by Imogen Collins, while being supported by the JDS Steering Group. There will be also be a lunchtime talk as well as a parent talk available.

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 24th January at 17:00. Late entries won’t be accepted.  

Club Coaches are encouraged to attend, either to support the running of the sessions (on the water) or to shadow and learn for development opportunities. To do this please sign up HERE. Coaches that will earn 10 CPD points for their coaching record. 

JDS Winter Skills Days 2024/25: Day 2 sign-up now open!

   23 November 2024    Athlete Development, Athletes, Coaching

The MRC, SRC and Paddle England Talent are pleased to announce that our second JDS winter series event is now open for booking. Please click HERE if you would like to book a spot. 

The event will be taking place at Papercourt Lake, near Guildford on Saturday 14th December. The day will be in K2/C2s and will seek to develop crew boat skills amongst paddlers, including building an understanding of how to run the boat, the importance of communication skills and pacing. Paddlers will need to bring a K2/C2 to the event, please speak to your club about borrowing if needed and/or liaise with other paddlers who may attend.  

The session specific coaching will be led by Maia Wallace-Loziou (Richmond Canoe Club) & Becky Solway (Elmbridge Canoe Club) throughout the day, while being supported by the JDS Steering Group. The steering group will be running an educational lunchtime session around motivators and goals for the juniors as well to support conversations with their coaches at their home clubs.

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 6th December at 17:00. Late sign-ups won’t be accepted.  

Club Coaches are encouraged to attend, either to support the running of the sessions (on the water) or to shadow and learn for development opportunities. To do this please sign up HERE. Coaches that will earn 10 CPD points for their coaching record. 

Junior Development Squad Winter Series 24/25 Day 1 Sign-up

   2 October 2024    Athlete Development, Athletes, Coaching

The MRC, SRC and Paddle England Talent Department pleased to announce that our first JDS winter series event is now open for booking. Please click HERE if you would like to book a spot. 

The event will be taking place at Gloucester Canoe Club on Saturday 19th October. The day will be in K2/C2s and will seek to develop crew boat skills amongst paddlers, including building an understanding of how to run the boat, the importance of communication skills and pacing. Paddlers will need to bring a K2/C2 to the event, please speak to your club about borrowing if needed and/or liaise with other paddlers who may attend.  

The day will be led by Alice Murphy & Holly Mobbs. 

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 11th October at 17:00. Late entries won’t be accepted.  

Club Coaches are encouraged to attend. If any coach would like to play a more formal role in the day by supporting the delivery to paddlers we would be very appreciative, to do this please sign up HERE. Coaches that will earn 10 CPD points for their coaching record. These days would not function without volunteer coaches and we are greatly appreciative of ALL coaches that can offer some time to support and are also willing to learn and develop practices during the day.

Spanish K4 Series 2024 Write-Up

   12 July 2024    Athlete Development, International, Racing

Thank you to Paul Dimmock for providing this write-up and for being Team Manager on the trip.

K4 racing in Spain is second to none with some 70 K4’s racing in the Spanish Federations annual Regional, National and International K4 5km races. Great Britain had two relatively young crews competing in the K4 International events involving a Saturday race in Sanabria and a Sunday race in Valladolid. We certainly fielded the youngest boats in both the women’s and men’s fields, and the racing was both exciting and a huge learning opportunity of K4 racing against some of the best paddlers in the world; an experience which will assist all the athletes in their athletic careers.

The Senior Men K4 Crew were: William Stroud (Chelmsford Canoe Club), Sam Cribbett (Nottingham Kayak Club), Finn Cadell (Nottingham Kayak Club), Gabriel Popham-Coveley (Falcon Canoe Club).

The Senior Women K4 Crew were: Nerys Hall (Wey Kayak Club), Freya Peters (Richmond Canoe Club), Jessie Urquhart (Nottingham Kayak Club), Matilda Enoch (Nottingham Kayak Club).

The Spanish hospitality, like the weather, was very warm and the Federation could not have been anymore supportive, not just to us but the Czechia, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Germany, and Denmark. The international line up, including of course the hosts Spain, assured our athletes some fast and furious racing. As Sam Cribbett, who stroked the Senior Men K4, found out when lining up against multiple World Championship medallist Adrian Boros stroking the Hungarian K4, racing Internationally in K4 is not for the faint-hearted and Sam rose to the challenge. Technical problems besieged the men’s boat, but they pushed on with great heart to beat the Danish.

The girls experimented with different combinations for the two races. Jessie stroked at the first race and Freya at the second, both combinations were equally strong. On Sunday, the women unfortunately had rudder issues after the 2nd turn and were robbed of the result they deserved but like the our men’s crew pulled hard in the second half of the race and managed to keep the German crew behind them.

For Great Britain, the results didn’t reflect the team spirit or the tenacity each paddler put into the two races. I’m confident that we will see more of these eight athletes as they grow their athletic careers and develop into world class paddlers in their own right. There’s no better way for Marathon Racing Committee to achieve its objective of developing athletes in international racing than through crew boat racing on this scale. It is through our engagement in racing, athletes will grow in their personal ability, learn the subtle complexity of crew boat racing and ensure the love of racing is the essential ingredient of long-term success.

The Spanish Federation facilitated superb racing and were the perfect hosts and should be congratulated for ensuring all the National Teams were part of a K4 racing spectacular.

Final word for the athletes Finn, Gabriel, Sam, Will, Freya, Matilda, Nerys and Jessie, who all are relatively new to senior racing, showed great potential and all conducted themselves with maturity way beyond their years.

Well done all.

Under 14 and Under 16 Selection at National Marathon Championships 2024 Announcement & Availability Forms

   3 July 2024    Athlete Development, International, Selection

Due to logistical difficulties, the Marathon Racing Committee (MRC) will be unable to send an Under 14 & Under 16 development team to the French Nationals event in 2024. However, the Selection committee recognises the importance of this opportunity to many of the young athletes and remain committed to athlete development. Therefore, the National Marathon Championships, at Reading Canoe Club on 13th and 14th July, will remain a selection event for Under 14 and Under 16 athletes. The MRC are making arrangements for the selected athletes to attend the German National Championships, or an international equivalent race in Spring 2025, in place of the French Nationals. The provisional date for the German National Championships is 9-11th May 2025.

All athletes who are racing in the Under 14 and Under 16 event categories at the 2024 National Marathon Championships who are wishing to be considered for selection must complete the below availability form by 22:00 on the 7th August.

2024 World Cup, Waterlands and FISU Canoe Sports Championships Selection Announcement

   26 March 2024    Athlete Development, Athletes, International, Racing, Selection

Following the Assessment Race on Saturday 23rd March, the Selection Committee met to complete the selections for the World Cup, Waterlands and University Worlds. The Selection Committee would like to thank Norwich Club for hosting the first assessment of 2024. The wind was very strong but despite this, the starts were well executed and there was a really positive spirit on this day of racing.

Please see below to see the full selection note and statement from the Selection Committee.

We would like to congratulate the athletes on their selections to their respective teams.

Finally, we would like to thank Norwich, all the athletes and supporters for fantastic day of racing.

JDS Winter Series 2023/24 – Day 4 Sign-up

   28 February 2024    Athlete Development, Coaching

The Marathon Racing Committee, Sprint Racing Committee and BC Talent Department are excited to announce the sign-up for the fourth JDS Winter Series 2023/24 day is now open. This is the final winter skills day of the 2023/24 season.

Run from Reading Canoe Club, the day is a K4/C4 day with a focus on helping paddlers develop comfort and adaptability within these boats through increased exposure and time.

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 8th March at 17:00. Late entries won’t be accepted.  Please also check the criteria for athletes attending and if in doubt, contact Charlie Barwis and Holly Mobbs using the emails on the website.

Please note that due to the ongoing difficult weather conditions, we are monitoring the river at Reading and will make a final decision on the event on Monday 11th March. If cancelled, we will of course issue refunds.

If you have any issues with sign up, please contact daniel.thompson@britishcanoeing.org.uk.

Coaches are also encouraged to sign-up for the day. Coaches attending will play an important role in supporting the delivery of the sessions planned within smaller groups. As such, by signing up you may take the lead of a smaller group or play a supporting role to another coach, whichever you are most comfortable with. Scott Hynds will be there on the day as coach developer and he will be facilitating informal learning throughout the day. As usual, there will be a coaches briefing ahead of the day. This will take place on Tuesday 12th March at 19:30.

All coaches attending will receive 10 CPD points. To sign up to attend the coach development aspect of the day please click HERE. 

GB-ONE Junior Conference 2024

   16 February 2024    Athlete Development, Coaching

As part of our working partnership with British Canoeing Talent Department, the MRC are keen to promote the upcoming GB-ONE Conference at Wey Kayak Club on Saturday 2nd March.

The GB-ONE conference aims to create an event where coaches can come together for the day to share knowledge and experiences. Whilst the focus of the coaching conference will predominantly deliver on aspects identified in the Sprint Strategy, the content of the sessions will be applicable to the development of athletes across flatwater racing. 

A buffet lunch will be provided.

To ensure numbers are correct, please sign up here. Sign-up closes on Tuesday 20th February.

JDS Winter Series 2023/24 – Day 3 Sign-up

   10 January 2024    Athlete Development, Coaching

The Marathon Racing Committee, Sprint Racing Committee and BC Talent Department are excited to announce the sign-up for the third JDS Winter Series 2023/24 day is now open.

Run from Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham, the day is a K1/C1 and K4/C4 day with a carasouel of sessions covering a wide variety of skills. These sessions include start buckets, sprint race planning and understanding fundamental gym movements.

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 19th January at 17:00. Late entries won’t be accepted.  Please also check the criteria for athletes attending and if in doubt, contact Charlie Barwis and Holly Mobbs using the emails on the website.

Please note that we are aware of the river situation in Nottingham and we are monitoring the lake conditions at HPP. We will make a decision about the day happening on Friday 19th January. We recognise that for many, you will be travelling a longer distance to attend and will potentially be booking accommodation so we want to give as much notice as possible, whilst still giving the day the best chance to go ahead. 

If you have any issues with sign up, please contact daniel.thompson@britishcanoeing.org.uk.

As usual, the coach development will be delivered by Scott Hynds during the day. However this one will run slightly differently to others. It will revolve around a carousel of coaching stations led by a specific coach who will be delivering a specific topic area. As such, coaches attending the day will have the opportunity to view and observe a number of different sessions led by a variety of different coaches. As a coach attending, areas you will observe and review will include: 

  • Session construct: Are the objectives of the session clear and how achievable are the outcomes?
  • Session Delivery: How have the paddlers been briefed? In what ways has the coach used audio, visual and demonstration to explain the session purpose?
  • How does the coach check for understanding?  
  • How is feedback sought and how is it delivered?  

All coaches attending will receive 10 CPD points. To sign up to attend the coach development aspect of the day please click HERE. 

JDS Winter Series 2023/24 – Day 2 Sign-up

   12 November 2023    Athlete Development, Athletes, Coaching

The Marathon Racing Committee, Sprint Racing Committee and BC Talent Department are excited to announce the sign-up for the second JDS Winter Series 2023/24 day is now open.

Run from Papercourt Lake, near Guildford, the day is a K2/C2 day with both sessions led by Ivan Lawler. The day will focus on marathon skills, with the sessions seeking to develop portaging, turns and wash hanging skills, amongst others! 

For more information about the JDS, including entry criteria and to sign up please click HERE. As a reminder, the cost is £10. Sign up closes on Friday 24th November at 17:00. Late entries won’t be accepted.  Please also check the criteria for athletes attending and if in doubt, contact Charlie Barwis and Holly Mobbs using the emails on the website.

Please note that because of a technical issue with our membership platform, after completing sign up using the link above, you will be contacted directly via email to provide some further information which we require ahead of the event and cannot currently collect. We would appreciate it if you could complete this ASAP and ahead of the closing deadline of Friday 24th November. 

If you have any issues with sign up, please contact daniel.thompson@britishcanoeing.org.uk.

Coaches are also encouraged to sign-up to support the day but also gain some CPD by working with other coaches as well as our coach developer, Scott Hynds. There will be an additional online coaches briefing in advance of the day on Tuesday 28th November at 19:30.

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