World Championship
World Rafting Championships 2010 – Netherlands
Youth World Rafting Championships – Netherlands
World Rafting Championships 2011 – Costa Rica
History
The World Rafting Championship has its origins in the international events of Project RAFT in which up to 50 teams competed in various disciplines including Slalom and Down River on the Chuya river, Siberia (1987), Nanthala river, USA (1989), Reventazón and Pacuare rivers, Costa Rica (1991) and Coruh river, Turkey (1993). Later, the Camel White Water Challenge (CWWC) took place on the Zambezi river, Zimbabwe (1995–1997 and 2001), Reventazón and Pacuare rivers, Costa Rica (1998), Orange river, South Africa (1999) and Futalefu river, Chile (2000).
The last three events were given the status of World Championships and for this reason the teams had to qualify through selection events at the national and continental levels in coordination with the International Rafting Federation (IRF). In the year 2000 the IRF resolved to hold the World Rafting Championships every 2 years and eliminate the selection events at the continental level to facilitate the development of the sport at the international level.
Consequentially the World Rafting Championships have been held on the Reventazón and Pacuare rivers, Costa Rica (1998), Orange river in South Africa (1999), Futalefu River in Chile (2000), Gauley River in USA (2001), Vlatava River in Czech Republic (2003), Quijos River in Ecuador (2005), Naerinchon River in South Korea (2007) and with the 2009 event to be held on the Vrbas and Tara Rivers in Bosnia & Herzegovina in 2009.
Teams
The teams that attend the WRC are selected by their national federations through fair and credible selections. The top men’s and top women’s team from each member federation is eligible to attend. teams consist of 6 paddlers and 1 reserve for R6 and 4 paddlers and 1 reserve for R4.
Disciplines
Rafting competitions consist of 4 disciplines – Time Trial, Head-to-Head (H2H) Sprint, Slalom and Downriver. The points earned in each discipline are added to determine the Overall winner and final positions. Each team has 6 members with the option to have a reserve.
The Time Trial is a hard, fast, short burst of speed for the teams. It is ideally over a fairly short distance and is about 2 to 3 minutes of hard paddling for 10% ofthe overall points. It is always done first, cannot be on a Class 5 rapid and teams are set off one by one, hence racing the clock and not each other.
The H2H is without doubt the most visually exciting discipline as it is pitting two teams together in a fast paced sprint for the finish line. It is ideally over a shortish distance but must be through a rapid, normally taking teams about 2 to 3 minutes to run the course. The two teams are set off together with the team having the best time in the Time Trial being given lane choice. Although the race organisers always try to have the lanes as even as possible this is not easy as a river is so dynamic and changing river levels can also create problems. Ideal locations for a H2H have more than one line through the course allowing teams to overtake. It counts for 20% of the total points and is an elimination race in which pairs of teams race down a section of powerful rapids. The winner of each heat proceeds to the next round and eventually just 2 teams will remain for the Final.
The Slalom is the most technically challenging event and counts for 30% percent of the total points. This event demands a high level of technique and teamwork to negotiate the rafts through 12 downriver and upriver gates in powerful rapids. Touching, failing to pass or intentionally moving a gate results in a penalty. Each team runs the course twice and their best time is used to determine the results.
The Downriver is the star event and is worth 40% of the total score. The race is close to an hour of racing along of a section of continuous and powerful rapids. Technical ability and endurance are essential elements to ensuring a good position in this event which is crucial for the teams that aspire to win the Championship. The points earned by the teams in the previous events determine their position in the starting line-up in groups up to 5 rafts.
