Sprint Annual Report

In 2015, The Sharks invested heavily in Sprint to try and build this competitive discipline up in the club, the Club has continued this policy through 2016 with mixed results. We do not have enough paddlers wanting to be involved in the discipline to make it viable, but those who have committed have done well.

The Club did have paddlers racing at a number of events throughout the year, with some very good results. First significant race was the London Youth Games. Joel Gunnery was selected to represent the London Borough of Hillingdon, the first Shark paddler to represent a borough in the sprint event. And event better still he won! Well done Joel. This is a significant break through as traditionally the winners come from the big clubs. It is also the first time Hillingdon have had winner in the Canoeing Regatta. Lianna Nolan also represented Hillingdon and came 6th in the final of the 200m sprint.

The second event The Sharks attended was the Marlow Regatta, a smaller event than in past years which the weather did not help, it was an opportunity for two new Sharks to enter their first ever sprint Race. Conor Sheehan and Kiara Sheehan. Joel Gunnery raced in the 200m Junior race and made the final, but the race of the day belonged to 18-year-old Adam Stewart who came 4th overall in his first ever senior race. Adam is a GLL supported Athlete.

The highlight if the season must have been the return of the London Regional Regatta, which saw The Sharks come third club over all. A fantastic result!

The youngest competitors of the day were twins, Maja Krukowska and Marcel Krukowski at just nine-years-old and paddling in their first ever competition.

Kiara Sheehan (12) and Johan Kukkohovi (11). each of them taking first place in the girls and boys respectively were racing in the Lightening class.

In The Boys D race, Joel Gunnery and Conor Sheehan were representing The Sharks This was their first Regional sprint event, a big step up from other races and 7th and 8th places in both the 500m and 200m respectively, What a great start! In the Men’s races Adam Stewart powered to victory taking the Men’s D 500m race and the 200m race. Whilst Grant Underwood faced a tough battle in the Men’s C, squeezed into second place in the 500m event but was victorious in the 200m. Grant is partly funded by Loughborough University Sports Scholarship scheme and is a GLL supported Athlete.

The Sharks also entered a K2 for the first time with Grant and Adam powering their way to victory by16 seconds in the 500m and just piped to the post in the 200m by 0.75 of a second.

Local Race at Marlow, Regional Race in London, only one way to end the season and that is racing at a National Regatta at the National Water Sports Centre in Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham. Which happened in September.

Both Grant and Adam were back in action in K2 and K1, with Grant making the final of the Men’s C. Conor Sheehan, racing for the first time at this level and Maciej Waszcyszak racing for the first time ever in a Sprint race, both in Boys’ D. Another new paddler was Soul Gunning who raced in K2 with Conor Sheehan.

Johan Kukkohovi racing at his first national regatta in the Lightening class, made the final where he came 7th. A great result. Alexandra Jude also paddled in the Women’s D 200m Race.

In conclusion, some fantastic result and great that some new paddlers racing at national events, but we need to get many more paddler involved. For more information or to get involved in Sprint racing call 07951 770241 or email: sprint@thesharks.org.uk.

Thank-you to our coaches and team managers, Beata and Neal, for supporting athletes this year.

http://www.thesharks.org.uk/end-of-season-report-sprint/

http://www.thesharks.org.uk/sprint-canoeing-2016/