Michael Noyelle | ICF - The 11th edition of the ICF Canoe Polo World Championships takes place from 23-28 September in Thury-Harcourt, France. 510 players will represent 27 countries and qualified for the competition based on the position that they finished at previous World Championships and in between, Continental Championships.

The small town of Thury-Harcourt, France, located in a beautiful area called Swiss Normandy (2 hours West from Paris), is considered as the Mecca of Canoe Polo. The sport is like a cult here and many remember the successful organisation of the 2007 European Championships. Up to 50.000 spectators are expected all week on the fully equipped facilities of the Traspy River.

Since the inaugural Championships held in 1994 in Sheffield, England, rule changes and adaptations have increased the pace of the sport making it faster, more explosive and much more attractive to spectators and the media who have taken a keen interest in the sport’s development.

The introduction of the 60 second shot-clock for high level competition has been a very positive step for the discipline. This revision was made after the 2010 World Championship in Italy and has been well received by players and coaches alike. This rule change has also resulted in the use of more substitutes to keep the speed of play high.

It is worth mentioning that the five continents are represented in Thury-Harcourt as beside the usual contenders to podium like Germany, France, Netherlands, Great Britain, Australia or New Zealand,  we will also see USA, Canada and Brazil from America, Namibia from Africa for its first participation, as well as Iran and Malaysia for Asia.

Titan fight in the Men senior category

24 teams are entered in the Men senior category. 2013 World Games winners Germany and reigning World Champions Netherlands are favourites to the title this year, but the French, who won the bronze medal in 2012 Worlds and silver medal in the 2013 World Games, have the field advantage in Normandy and will pose the biggest challenge to Germany’s and Netherlands’ campaigns for the world championship title.

20 teams are entered in the Women senior category. Germany, Great Britain, and France distinguished themselves last year in the World Games and it will be difficult for other teams to break through this established trio, but teams like Australia, bronze medal in 2012 in Poland, also have a card to play.

16 teams are entered in the Men U21 category. The Under 21 Men category often proves to be the hardest category for referees to officiate and it is also the most difficult to predict the outcome as this is often the stage where players transition into senior teams. The first round of competition will be a good indicator of form but we can expect France, Germany to be challenged by New Zealand and surprising  Iran who looked very solid during their preparation games.

8 teams are entered in the Women U21 category. The Under 21 Women category will be one of the toughest as all teams in this young category will play each other, with the top 4 teams qualifying for the semifinals. France and Germany will fight for the podium for sure but New Zealand has proved to be a tough team to play and Poland gained some priceless experience two years ago during the World Championships they hosted in 2012.

Links

• Website: www.thuryharcourtcanoe2014.com
• Livestream: www.youtube.com/user/CanoeKayakTV

Photos: Fédération Française de Canoë-Kayak