Words by Holly Mobbs
For the third year in a row, the Paddle UK Marathon Racing Committee has directly partnered with the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race Organisation to put on the National School Canoe Championships.
Run from Hawley Lake in Farnborough, the National School Canoe Championships was created with the main objective to encourage grassroots paddling at a school level, and the development of school teams in paddlesport.
In 2024, seven schools submitted entries with paddlers representing Norwich School, Cokethorpe School, Lord Wandsworth College, Kimbolton School, City of Norwich School, Wymondham College, and Bryanston School.
To take part, all schools have to show an active commitment to supporting paddlesport with their students, whether that be leading the coaching through their own staffing body or using a clubs expert coach to run a school canoe/kayak club as part of their co-curriculum/sport offering.
The morning involved a series of “500m” and “200m” sprint races for both the Experienced and Novice categories. The Novice category was mostly made up of crews who had only been in a boat for a matter of months. In the Experienced 500m final, Jasmine Sargeant and Dominic Walker (Norwich School) took the win in a time of 00:02:00. In the Novice 500m final, Joshua Colman and Charlie Bird (Lord Wandsworth College) produced a dominant performance, beating their closest competitor by nearly 13 seconds.
The 200m event takes the format of a knockout, where crews are eliminated in groups until the last remaining five boats go head to head in the final. In the Experienced race, Jasmine Sargeant and Dominic Walker (Norwich School) showed a well-managed performance to stay away from the collisions and capsizes, which resulted in Jack Ockenden and Rosie Ormerod (Bryanston School) losing a set of paddles.
This helped them to secure the overall experienced sprint trophy ahead of Oliver Blanchard and Hugo Blanchard (Wymondham College) in second and Xander Slocock and Jonathan Smith (Lord Wandsworth College) in third.
In the Novice category, it was the turn of Jamie Sheffield and James Pile (Lord Wandsworth College) to take the win in the 200m. However, due to a DNF in the 500m race, they were unable to take the overall sprint trophy, which Joshua Colman and Charlie Bird (Lord Wandsworth College) claimed. Oscar Hoy and Isaac Wright (Kimbolton School) took second overall in the sprint trophy and Max Brockley and Charlie Mckenzie (Lord Wandsworth College) in third.
After some lunch, crews then competed in the marathon event. The experienced category competed over six laps of the lake with four portages, whereas the novice category competed over four laps with three portages.
Jasmine Sargent and Dominic Walker (Norwich School) had a strong start and were able to open a small gap off the first turn, maintaining their lead the whole way round. Myles Anniss and Freddie Tucker (Bryanston School) and Olivier Blanchard and Hugo Blanchard (Wymondham College) ended up working hard as a chase pair. A tight sprint finish saw Anniss and Tucker take second by one second over Blanchard and Blanchard. Lotte Phillips and Eva Mcaulay (City of Norwich School) took the ladies win.
Speaking after the overall marathon and sprint win, Jasmine and Dominic said:
“It was great to win after a tough time at the competition last year. It was well organised and a very fun day of racing. I really liked the format of the day because there are not many other opportunities to do a marathon and some sprints on the same day. It’s nice to represent your school, the race is a great way for novices to have a go at racing and hopefully love the sport. Thank you for organising the event, I look forward to next year’s.”
In the Novice category, it was the turn of Oscar Hoy and Isaac Wright (Kimbolton School) to take the overall win by seconds in a tight race for the top three. The two Lord Wandsworth Colleges of Colman and Bird and Sheffield and Pile finished second and third respectively. Aimee Ellinor and Leo Goodacre-Bullen (Kimbolton School) took the novice mixed win and Alice Lines and Emma Cam took the novice ladies win.
For the second year in a row, a dominant performance from Lord Wandsworth College saw their crews take the win in the Experienced Team Trophy as well as the Novice Team Trophy. A return to the competition for Cokethorpe School resulted in them taking the Novice Ladies Team Trophy home with them too.
Reflecting on Lord Wandsworth College defending their title, Richard Lovell (the school team leader) said:
“A goal for the school is to get students into paddle sports, especially racing. The national schools are a fantastic window into both sprint and marathon.
“The program and the venue are fantastic for both paddles and spectators. It would be great to see more schools get involved. From a paddlers view, It’s the first time they get to sit on a start line with competitors from other schools.
“They may have races against each other, but only in time trials including the Waterside Series and Devizes to Westminster. Overall, an event that I highly recommend that schools get involved in. We are already training for next year and I hope to bring more novice crews.”
Tom Slader, Cokethorpe School Team Leader, said:
“The atmosphere was fantastic, with excellent management, friendly competition, and a genuinely supportive community that made the experience truly welcoming.
“The camaraderie and sportsmanship displayed by all participants made it an unforgettable experience for our crews. Our students’ dedication and hard work paid off, demonstrating their commitment to reaching a competitive standard in this demanding and unforgiving sport.
“Kayaking has proven to be incredibly beneficial for our pupils, promoting physical fitness, teamwork, and resilience. The positive experience at the championships has further encouraged Cokethorpe to continue supporting and developing our kayaking program.”
The 2025 National Schools Championships will return to Hawley Lake on Sunday 16th November 2025. If you’d like to take part next year, you can find information on the entry criteria here.
If you’re currently working within a school and would be interested in introducing paddlesport, you can get in touch with the " target="_blank" rel="noopener">MRC Junior Development Lead, Holly Mobbs for more information and advice.