Our Olympians and Paralympians understand the issues facing paddlers in our blue spaces. They also know why it’s important to leave a lasting legacy for future generations.
Olympic gold medalist Joe Clarke MBE and Olympian Adam Burgess made a short film, Fuelling The Future, in partnership with Green Cuisine – a Team GB sponsor.
“The birth of [my son] Hugo has changed my perspective on life in a lot of ways,” said Joe, who is competing in the kayak cross event in Paris.
“That wider picture of when I’m not here, what is the world going to look like for him.
“I guess I want to be able to give him the opportunities that I’ve had.”
Water quality is a major issue and Paddle UK, through our Clear Access, Clear Waters campaign, is pushing for change.
Adam Burgess, who is competing in the C1 at the Olympics, said he’s seen the sewage problem firsthand.
“We’ve been on the water when it’s happened and like you can tell the smell changes and you know it’s just not safe to be on there.
“Some of the places we race in Europe they’ve got these crystal clear like blue water in their rivers.
“It would be great to see a push to try and clean our rivers up in the UK.”
Paddle UK’s Paracanoe team have been doing their bit too.
During a visit from Sport England’s Pedal for Paris team, athletes and coaches spoke with the group’s chair Chris Boardman about environmental sustainability.
Rob Oliver and Emma Wiggs MBE were also interviewed by the BBC News Channel about the issues we are facing on the water.
“Lately, with all the campaigns, it’s definitely got a lot better.”
Emma added: “[Keeping our waterways clean] is so important so we can enjoy these incredible blue spaces.”
Earlier in the year, the team braved bad weather on the water to fill five huge sacks with junk on the River Trent.
It came ahead of the Big Paddle Clean-up in which about 4,000 volunteers took the water to collect almost 2,000 sacks of rubbish.
Paddle UK is campaigning for greater access and pollution-free waters.
We are also part of the The End Sewage Pollution coalition and the Clean Water Sports Alliance.
Water quality guidance – Don’t get sick doing what you love >>
We’ll be sharing updates about our athletes on social media and on our Paris 2024 portal during the Olympics and Paralympics.
