On 16-19 September 2021, the ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships took place in Copenhagen with the participation of 620 athletes from 56 countries. The program of the Championships included 42 disciplines in rowing on flat water, including 10 Olympic and 9 Paralympic distances.
Ukraine was represented by 31 athletes: 12 – in kayaks, 10 – in canoe, 9 – in paracanoe. Ukrainian athletes won a total of 5 medals in canoe sprint (3 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze) and 5 medals in paracanoe (3 gold and 2 bronze).
This is an extraordinary success of the Ukrainian team, taking into account that at the last 2019 ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships in Szeged, Hungary Ukraine won only one medal. Ukraine won third place in the team standings after Hungary and Belarus, and second place in the medal standings of paracanoe after Great Britain.
In the finals in canoeing, the Ukrainian quartet consisting of Vitaliy Vergeles, Andrii Rybachok, Yurii Vandiuk and Taras Mishchuk took the first place, overcoming 500 meters in 1:31.20.
Another Ukrainian kayak four consisting of Oleh Kukharyk, Dmytro Danylenko, Igor Trunov and Ivan Semykin won the “gold” passing 500 meters in 1:20.19.
Ukrainian rowers Liudmyla Luzan and Anastasiia Chetverikova won gold in the canoe doubles at a distance of 500 meters (1:55.85). Liudmyla Luzan also got on the podium in the distance of 500 meters in a canoe single winning a “silver” medal (2:05.77).
Canoe four consisting of Liudmyla Luzan, Olena Tsyhankova, Yuliia Kolesnyk and Anastasiia Chetverikova won “bronze” in the 500 meters (1:49.79).
Maryna Mazhula (KL1 class), Mykola Syniuk (KL2) and two-time Paralympic champion Serhii Yemelianov (KL3) became world champions in the 200-meter paracanoe disciplines. Natalia Lahutenko (VL3) and Vladyslav Yepifanov (VL3) won “bronze” in the 200 meters.
The holding of the championship on Lake Bagsværd in the north of the Danish capital is historic, as this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Danish Canoe Federation. In addition, a recognizable feature of this event has become its organisation mainly by volunteers who held a climate-neutral event and provided the live streaming of all races.
Canoe sprint is an Olympic discipline with distances of 200, 500, 1000 and 5000 meters. Swimming takes place on single boats (kayaks) and double and quadruple boats (canoes).
Photo Credit: Canoe Federation of Ukraine