The MRC and Devizes to Westminster Organisation are looking forward to hosting the 2024 edition of the National School Championships on Sunday 17th November at Hawley Lake.
For full information on entry requirements, please visit the DW website page here.
To enter, you can download the entry form here.
Please see the below letter from Richmond Canoe Club, the organisers of the 2024 Hasler Final.
Dear Participants, Volunteers, and Supporters,
It is with a heavy heart that we must announce the cancellation of the Hasler Final 2024, scheduled for Sunday, 6th October, at Ham Riverside, Richmond upon Thames. This difficult decision was made with the safety and well-being of everyone in mind.
Why we’ve made this decision
As of 1st October, river flow at Kingston is 246.171 m³/sec—far exceeding safe levels for paddling. Unfortunately, with more rain expected and high water levels unlikely to recede in time, we cannot guarantee safe conditions for the race.
We know it’s a regular occurrence for races to be cancelled on this stretch of river. Even though we Richmond paddlers like to blame all the water from upstream, we also know how dangerous this stretch of water can be, and as such, we have spent significant time in our risk assessments and PLA condition negotiations, all of which are telling us it’s not safe to proceed.
The river is just too dangerous, with strong currents and increased debris that even experienced paddlers would struggle to navigate. Safety measures we’d normally rely on are also less effective in these conditions. We cannot take the risk.
Looking ahead
We are considering the possibility of rescheduling the event. We are looking at the feasibility of holding the event at a November race date at an alternative location. We will keep you updated with any developments over the next 14 days, including refunds and transfer of entries.
Volunteers & Vendors
Volunteers will be contacted personally with further information. Vendors and suppliers will hear from us individually to discuss arrangements.
Thank You
We want to extend our deepest thanks to everyone. Athletes, volunteers, sponsors, and the community of Richmond Canoe Club, your support has been incredible, and it means a lot. We know how much time, energy, and passion you’ve all invested in this event and the Hasler series in 2024, and we share in your disappointment.
While we can’t race this time, I have no doubt that we’ll come together for future events when conditions allow us to enjoy the sport we love.
Please stay safe on the water, and we look forward to seeing you all soon. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out at marathon@richmondcanoe.club, and stay tuned to our website and social media for updates.
Thank you to all competitors, clubs, volunteers and spectators who made the National Canoe Marathon Championships 2024 at Reading such a success, particularly Reading Canoe Club for hosting and organising.
There were a number of medals not claimed at the prize giving on both days. If you made a podium position but have not collected your medal, please email our secretary here.
At the end of Prize Giving on Sunday, there are normally two club trophies awarded: the overall club points and the junior paddlers club points. However, this year, only one set of points was read out. After a review, we have discovered that the wrong points and podium was read out for the overall club points awards. The points announced were instead those for the junior club points and the overall club points were not announced. We apologise for this mistake and any disappointment this might cause.
Below are the correct points for both trophies. Congratulations to Wey Kayak Club for winning both the overall club points and the junior club points trophies.
We will be in contact with clubs directly to arrange the correct plate awarding.
This weekend sees Reading play host to the biggest annual canoe marathon event in the country. We are super excited to see some tight racing and who manages to claim (or reclaim!) national championship titles.
Whether you are a member of the canoe marathon community or someone who has never watched canoe marathon before, there are lots of ways you can follow along with all the action over both days of racing.
If you are local to Reading, head down The Thames Promenade (RG1 8BD) from 9am on Saturday 13th or 8:30am on Sunday 14th to catch some racing in person. There will be commentary, food stands, trade stands, starts, finishes and one of the two portages taking place in this location so lots of action to watch! Racing will typically finish around 4:30pm each day. A particular highlight will be the Mixed K2 (2-person Kayak) race on Sunday starting at 3:30pm. Check out some of the links below for further information.
Throughout the weekend, the Marathon Racing Committee and Reading Canoe Club will be providing coverage via live streams, stories and posts on their social media channels, particularly their Instagram’s. Click the names above to gain access to both accounts.
There will also be live results published throughout the day via the live results tab on our website.
Live entries can be now be viewed here.
A full timetable of events and classes can be found here.
Full details on the courses for each class can be found here.
We are super excited for a great weekend of racing!
Did you know we have SUP races alongside the National Canoe Marathon Championships next month in Reading??
On Saturday 13th July, SUP paddlers can compete over an 8KM course in one of four categories: Rigid Board (Women), Rigid Board (Men), Inflatable Board (Women) and Inflatable Board (Men). They will not be national title races but you will be involved in the event and have a opportunity to see some marathon racing either side of your race!
Get your entry in by the 5th July at 23:59 to avoid the late entry fee! We would love to see you there!
More information here: https://nationals.reading-canoe.org.uk/sup-race/
The MRC are excited to announce the entries for the third edition of the National Short Course Championships are now open. You see the full event details and enter via our entries site here. This event also is part of the continuous assessment policy named within our selection policy. Full details can be reviewed here.
Entries close on the 2nd May with late entries closing on the 6th May.
We are still seeking volunteers to help out with the day so if you can spare some time, it would significantly help in the event running! Visit our recent website post here to find out more.
The Marathon Racing Committee would like to wish all competitors racing in the 2024 edition of the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race the best of luck. Have a safe and enjoyable (?) race to whichever finish line in your aim.
We would also like to thank all the volunteers (directors, committee, marshalls and more) out on the course over the next few days. Without you, these events could not happen.
There is a variety of coverage happening over the next three days as the straight through crews, juniors and stages compete and you can follow their progress in a variety of ways.
The official DW organisation channels include the following:
PaddleDaily, an independent paddling media company, will also be following the race through their channels. They might also be providing some live stream footage of the senior doubles race for us. You can find their channels below.
We look forward to following along ourselves!
We are seeking volunteers to help us run the National Short Course Marathon Championships 2024 on Sunday 12th May. Whether it’s helping with set-up on the Saturday or marshalling during the racing or even commentary, we need your help to make this amazing event even better. There are roles to suit everyone and every different time commitment.
If you are interested in volunteering even a little amount of time over the weekend, fill in the below form and the Short Course Nationals Race Leads will be in contact in due course. Thank you for helping us to make this discipline even better!!
The Marathon Racing Committee are excited to finally confirm all the dates and venues for the 2024 Major Events. Thank you to all the venues, clubs and organisers for stepping forward.
Sadly, year on year it has been harder and harder to find venues for these key events in our calendar. The MRC wants to re-emphasis to the community that without a variety of clubs stepping forward to host a major event, they will cease to exist in our calendar and at the level we have become used to. ALL clubs should be having serious conversations around how they can support the canoe marathon major events, whether that is through hosting at their home venue, using an alternative location or partnering up with another club. The more clubs that get involved the less work for everyone.
For the second year in a row, the MRC has directly partnered with the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race Organisation to put on the National School Canoe Championships on Sunday 19th November. Run from Hawley Lake in Farnborough, the National School Canoe Championships was created with the main objective to encourage grassroots paddling, and better preparation and development of school teams in paddlesport.
In 2023, five schools submitted entries with paddlers representing Norwich School, Heathside School, Lord Wandsworth College, Kimbolton School and Bryanston School. To take part, all schools have to show an active commitment to supporting paddlesport with their students. If you are interested in getting involved in 2024 and need advice on how to get paddlesport established within your school, contact the MRC Junior Development Lead here.
The morning involved a series of “500m” and “200m” sprint races for both the Senior/Experienced and Novice categories. The Novice category was mostly made up of crews who had only been in a boat for a matter of months. In the Senior/Experienced 500m final, Jared Hughes and Tate Morrison (Lord Wandsworth College) took the win in a close fought battle with Ted Umbers and Xander Finn (Lord Wandsworth College) and Sophie Dunlop and Henry Moult (Heathside School). In the Novice 500m final, Alex Williams and Joel Watt (Lord Wandsworth College) finished in the fastest time by over two seconds.
The 200m event takes the format of a knockout, where crews are eliminated in groups until the last remaining five boats go head to head in the final. In the Senior/Experienced race, it was Jack Ockenden and Jasper Godfrey (Bryanston School) who showed an exceptional final sprint, securing the win by over two seconds and therefore securing the overall Senior Sprint Trophy by a matter of milliseconds ahead of Jared Hughes and Tate Morrison (Lord Wandsworth College). In the Novice category, Alex Williams and Joel Watt (Lord Wandsworth College) took the win again and securing the overall novice sprint trophy too.
After some lunch, crews then competed in the marathon event. The senior/experienced category competed over five laps of the lake with four portages, whereas the novice category competed over four laps with three portages. Due the increasing headwind, the decision was made to reverse the course to a clock-wise direction. In contrast to the previous year, the senior race started with a large group of six boats off the start line, with crews battling it out for the best positions in the lead group. Out of the first portage, it broke down into four with Jack Ockenden and Jasper Godfrey (Bryanston School) battling their way back into the group. The portage seemed to be the area where opportunity arose with many errors causing breakaways and comebacks. The final portage was the decider with Jack and Jasper managing to open up a gap over Samuel Bull and Finn Taylor (Heathside School) and allowing them to take the overall win. Sophie Dunlop and Henry Moult (Heathside School) were third over the line and enabling them to take the mixed win. Maddison Mckernan and Imogen Field (Heathside School) took the ladies win.
Speaking after the overall marathon and sprint win, Jack and Jasper said, “We were really pleased with our success in the marathon and sprint events at the National Schools Canoe Championships. It was an incredible experience to race in the company of so many crews of such great quality. The racing was incredibly close in both sprint events, and in the marathon. We would like to thank the committee for their hard work, and we look forward to racing over Easter Weekend in the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race.”
In the Novice category, another dominant performance from Alex Williams and Joel Watt (Lord Wandsworth College) saw them earn another trophy, with an impressive gap of nine minutes over the rest of the field. Emma Croucher and Tom Sumpton (Kimbolton School) took the novice mixed win and Grace Gadsby and Sofia Kulynych (Lord Wandsworth College) took the novice ladies win.
Overall, Lord Wandsworth College took the win in the Senior Team Trophy as well as the Novice Team Trophy.
Reflecting on the schools win, Richard Lovell, Lord Wandsworth College team leader, said, “Instead of hanging up the canoeing kit at the end of DW, LWC have been training hard both on and off the water, and the results speak for themselves. What is equally impressive is the effect this has had on the students who only got in a boat in September. We have never had so many younger people out on the water. The team of 10 boats who entered the Nationals has come from a squad of 40 students. With 12 of last year’s DW team returning, having them as role models has helped raise the standard. The challenge now is to convert them into club paddlers when they leave the school next summer.”
“The National Schools is a great opportunity for students to meet up and compete rather than just time trial in the events leading up to Easter. It’s also a great showcase to the parents, showing there is more to canoeing than just DW. It would be fantastic to see more crews attend next year.”
Another year of tight racing was a personal highlight for the MRC and enabled some of the school racers to receive a direct invite to attend the recent JDS training day. We are certainly looking to grow the schools racing scene and would be keen to speak to any schools wishing to start a schools programme.