Nina Jelenc | Sportscene - The emerald Soča River will host another big Wildwater Canoeing competition this weekend. After the European Championships in Bovec, paddlers now await the start of the ICF Wildwater Canoeing Sprint World Championships in Solkan. The Slovenian team expects great results on the home course, especially from reigning world champion Nejc Žnidarčič who will fight for his third consecutive world sprint title.

The ICF Wildwater Canoeing Sprint World Championships will be the second of three major canoeing events this year in Slovenia. The first one – the European Wildwater Canoeing Championships in Bovec – was very successful for the Slovenian team, the second of the season comes this weekend, while the third canoeing festival will take place in August in Ljubljana, when the world’s best slalom paddlers will compete at the World Cup race.

As always Slovenian competitors are among the favourites for medals and they will also have a bit of advantage on a home course. “This year we have major competitions at home and therefore our team is seen as stronger than usual. Our expectations are really high. Competitors have shown good form already at the European Championships and now they have upgraded their form. The competition is harder at World Championships but the European teams are still the strongest and I expect the same competitors to fight for top places. I do not want to talk about the medals, but we are certainly one of the best,” said Slovenian team leader Srečko Masle before the Championships, himself also a World Champion years ago.

The main favourite in the men’s kayak race will undoubtedly be Nejc Žnidarčič who won two World Champion titles in 2011 and 2012. The goal for Slovenian paddler is clear – a third consecutive title. “This was the goal we set as soon as we found out that the World Championships would take place in Solkan. I am very motivated, especially because we will compete on a course where I learned how to paddle. It will be a special feeling to compete on a home course. I am sure Slovenians will have a few medals by Saturday, so it will be easier for me and I won’t be under such pressure. I hope the show will be great and that many people will come to support us,” said Žnidarčič. He experienced health problems a few weeks ago doing pull-ups in training, when the bar broke and he fell on his knees. He suffered kissing spine which made everything, even walking, very hard and painful. “I injured my back and I had to rest for eight days. Two weeks of training followed, but it was painful. I can paddle, but I can’t do anything in fitness. It’s not ideal, but the main thing is I can paddle normally. I am quite satisfied with my form, and I’m definitely performing at a higher level than at the Europeans,” added Žnidarčič.

Žnidarčič will be the one to watch on the Soča River, but many other excellent paddlers are already in Solkan to prepare for the Championships. As well as the great French, German and Czech paddlers, there are also others who will be tough opponents. The Italian team came to Solkan with the Slovenian born Italian paddler Jaka Jazbec who already has many medals from Wildwater Canoeing Championships. Excellent Slovakian slalom paddler Matej Benuš, who recently won a medal at the European Canoe Slalom Championships, will start too. The French team expects a lot from their paddlers, especially from Guillaume Alzingre who was the most successful paddler of the European Championships in Bovec where he won seven medals (six gold and a silver medal).

The Championships in front of a home crowd have also lured Luka Božič and Sašo Taljat, Slovenian Olympians in Canoe Slalom, who were also two-times World Champions in Wildwater Canoeing in 2010. “That was in 2010, we don’t know how it will be now. We paddled downriver for the first time in a long time yesterday, so we’ll see how it will turn out. We paddled in C2 twice two weeks ago on flatwater, but that is all the training we did,” said Sašo Taljat and Luka Božič added: “The competition has changed since then, so we don’t know what to expect.”

Not only competitors, but the Mayor of Nova Gorica Matej Arčon is looking forward to the competition too: “I still remember the day I went to Paris with Branko Brezigar and Jakob Marušič and the ICF chose Solkan to be the venue of the Championships. This was a special honour and joy and also special recognition for our club and federation. This is a nice promotion and the biggest sporting event that will be organized this year in the region of Goriška. I am certain that our competitors will have great results and that Nejc will become the World Champion for the third consecutive time.”

Organizers expect 180 competitors from 23 countries and five continents. The attraction of the championships will be Friday’s Finals under the floodlights (the Finals will start at 21.00). Also the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor is expected to attend Friday night’s Finals. Besides the competition schedule, organizers have also organised concerts and special educational programmes for schools. After the opening ceremony one of the most popular Slovenian groups ‘Dan D’ will hold a concert in the square in Solkan.

Official website: www.socakayak.si

Competition programme

Thursday 13 June
20.00   Opening ceremony

Friday 14 June
10.00 Heats  1st run: C1w, C2m, K1w
13.00 Heats  2nd run: C1w, C2m, K1w
21.00 Finals:  C1w, C2m, K1w

Saturday 15 June
10.00 Heats  1st run: C1m, K1m
12.30 Heats  2nd run: C1m, K1m
16.00 Finals:  C1m, K1m

Sunday 16 June
12.00   Team race 1st run
14.00   Team race 2nd run