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NEWS
GOLD MEDAL GLORY. PHOTO: COURTESY WORLD RAFTING CHAMPIONSHIPS NZ
The best paddlers in whitewater rafting flooded to Rotorua, New Zealand for the International Rafting Federation’s (IRF) World Championships in late November. Teams of six duked it out for four days on three rivers that are known for their technical and challenging whitewater. The Kaituna River hosted both the sprint and head-to-head
competitions, the Tarawera River was the site for slalom races and the Rangitaiki River was home to the downriver race on the final day of the competition. A traditional Maori pohiri (welcome) and hungi (a traditional
Maori meal) kicked off the event to officially welcome the competitors. “There [were] 24 countries represented at
this year’s World
Rafting Championships,” said Raewyn Larcombe of the New Zealand Rivers Association. “Twenty-two Open Men’s teams, 16 Open Women’s, seven Masters Men’s and two Masters Women’s.” In the downriver race, the competition with the highest point
value, teams started with a Le Mans-style start—competitors had to sprint a 20-meter distance before jumping into the raft and running 11 kilometers of class II-III whitewater on the Ran- gitaiki River.
18 PADDLING MAGAZINE || December 2013
BRAZIL CLAIMS TITLE AT WHITEWATER RAFTING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS Brazil battled it out in the Men’s Open category, stealing the
GOING FOR GOLD
World Champion title from Japan, who members of the IRF had favored to grab gold again this year. As the Brazilian team crossed the finish line, it was clear they had been working hard for this day—exhausted smiles broke out across all six faces as they shouted a cheer. “These guys have trained together for 10 years,” said Silmar
Sendin, translator for the Brazilian men’s team, “before this event, they trained everyday, sometimes at 2 or 3 a.m. because of work. They have a dream, they fight everyday to get this dream, and today, it came true.” Kiwi teams swept other categories, including the Women’s
Open, where they beat out stiff competition with a race time similar to that of the Australian men’s team. It was a weekend of tough competition, with results on the
leaderboard constantly changing, but the event maintained a strong sense of camaraderie. “After all,” said Sue Liell-Cock, Secretary General for the IRF,
“that’s what this whole thing started on. It doesn’t matter what language you speak or where you come from, you just love being on the river, and that’s a very unifying experience.” —Sierra Stinson
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