The first marathon assessment race of the 2026 season is being held at Norwich Canoe Club on Saturday 28th March. Results from this event will be used to select the Under 18 and Under 23 Waterlands Marathon development team for the trip in April. For full information on the selection process, please visit the selection policy here.
To be considered for selection, athletes must complete the availability form by 22:00 on 25th March. This can be found here.
Entry and details for the race are available on the marathon racing entry site here.
Paddle UK Marathon Racing Committee are looking for an additional member of staff (preferably female) for the Under 18 and Under 23 development trip to the Amsterdam Waterlands Marathon in April. This can be an exceptionally enjoyable trip, supporting talented young athletes on part of their canoe marathon racing journey.
The prerequisites required are as follows:
A Paddle UK approved Safeguarding qualification and a Paddle UK DBS
A clean driving licence.
A first aid qualification would be desirable
All reasonable expenses will be met by the committee as part of the trips budget.
The provisional travel arrangements are:
Departing the UK in two minibuses and the boat trailer on Thursday 16th April via the Channel Tunnel and arriving in Amsterdam that evening.
Depart Amsterdam for the UK on the morning of Sunday 19th April.
If you are interested or simply would like to find out a little more, please contact our International Logistics lead, Graham Warland, here: [email protected].
A number of updates have been made to the 2026 marathon selection policy, these reflect feedback received from members of the marathon paddling community during the consultation period. It is strongly advisable for all athletes to read and familiarise themselves with the finalised policy, which can now be viewed here.
Senior athletes seeking selection for both sprint and marathon teams are advised to review section 9 of the policy.
Athletes seeking selection for the Waterlands marathon are advised to review section 11 of the policy.
If anyone has any questions, please contact Nanette North, Chair of the selection panel via email: [email protected]
In order to attend you must have completed the Risk Assessment eLearning. The link to this is Risk Management and Risk Assessment eLearning | Buy Now Discipline volunteers can use the discount code: disciplinerisk to receive the eLearning for free.
The Risk Management and Risk assessment elearning course is normally £30 but using the discount code provided by the MRC above, it’s FREE to those taking it in advance and then booking onto the Safety Officer workshop.
As part of the standards of deployment requirements, all event organisers must complete these courses before lead organising events. The above opportunities are to support volunteers in completing these required qualifications.
The Marathon 2026 Selection Policy is now published for consultation. Members of the marathon community have until the end of Sunday 22nd February to feedback any comments to the marathon selection committee for review. Please send any comments directly to the selection committee chair via email: [email protected].
The full published draft policy can be found on our selection webpage here.
Sign up is now open for the fourth JDS winter series event for 2025/26. This will be taking place at the Norwich Canoe Club on Saturday 21st March and will be led by Matt Robinson & Scott Hynds, alongside the wider Junior Development Squad coaching team.
In addition to the event on the Saturday, Norwich Canoe Club will be running a sprint regatta on Sunday 22 March for juniors, in conjunction with hosting the BUCS regatta. Therefore, the JDS is partnering with Norwich CC to offer a full weekend of activity for juniors engaged in the JDS programme.
Saturday will focus on racing skills that can be applied at Sunday’s regatta and Sunday’s regatta will consist of K1 500, K1 5000 and a K1 200 mixed relay. Both Saturday and Sunday will be in K1s.
The cost to attend the full weekend is £22.00, but there is also a ticket option for those who just want to attend Saturday’s JDS session.
Travel, accommodation and food are to be organised individually, unfortunately we cannot offer any of these as part of the weekend.
For standards to attend and to sign up, please click HERE. Sign up closes on Friday 13th March at 17:00.
Junior Development Squad (JDS) is a joint initiative between the Marathon Racing Committee, Sprint Racing Committee and Paddle England Talent. Having been running as a collaborative exercise since 2021, the JDS has supported hundreds of juniors from a wide spread of clubs to develop their racing skills, create long-term friendships and increase exposure to crew boats. For more information on JDS, please visit our website page here with further links onto the main JDS site.
The marathon community, clubs, coaches and event organisers who utilise power craft as part of their operations and events should refer to the recently published case study around legal accountability and launch operations here: https://paddleuk.org.uk/legal-accountability-and-launch-operations/.
Paddle UK have updated the document on Powercraft and Qualifications in Paddlesafer to include powerboat guidance for events in response.
The Marathon Racing Committee is deeply sadden to hear the passing of Trevor Wetherall. A steadfast and influential figure in our sport for many years, Trevor was a true backbone of the canoe racing community. He will be fondly remembered by countless paddlers for his unwavering commitment to Richmond Canoe Club and for the encouragement and support he offered to the next generation of athletes.
Through his involvement in junior development training days, camps, and his work as a National Coach, Trevor shaped the journeys of many. His connection to marathon racing began long before his coaching career, having proudly represented Great Britain on the international stage as an athlete.
Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.
The Marathon Racing Committee are excited to finally confirm all the dates and venues for the 2026 Major Events. The variety of venues and locations, particularly new ones, makes 2026 a great time to get racing as much as you can!
Thank you to Manvers Lake Trust and Boathouse, Wey Kayak Club and Richmond Canoe Club for supporting canoe marathon by hosting and organising one of our major national events this year.
Keep your eyes peeled for a confirmation of the ACM date and further details on all our major events in the coming months!
Sign up is now open for the third JDS winter series event for 2025/26. This will be taking place at the National Watersports Centre in Nottingham on Saturday 31st January.
As a joint-pathway initiative between the MRC, SRC and PaddeUK Talent, the Junior Development Squad hosts four winter training days and a summer camp every year for developing juniors across the country to take part in, learn more and develop friendships across clubs. For more information about JDS, visit our website post here.
The day in Nottingham will be in K4s, with one session having a skills and drills focus, while the other session will centre on race day planning and execution through a mixture of class room and water based learning.Imogen Collins and Sam Glover will be leading the coaching on the day.
We’re also looking to deliver a parent workshop in the morning of the day too with the title to be confirmed.
The cost to attend remains £10 per person.
To see standards for entry and to sign up, please click HERE. Sign up closes on Friday 23rd January at 17:00.
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