Article and photography: Jan Homolka | Sportscene - Athletes prepare for the gruelling annual Sprint Worlds which are set to take place on the 14-16th June in Solkan, Slovenia.

The recent European Championships in Bovec, Slovenia tested athletes so to speak, warming them up for the 'cherry-on-the-cake' of the year – the World Championship.

The ICF Wildwater World Championships are held every year – shorter sprint events are yearly and longer distance 'classic' downriver events occur every two years. So for 2013 it's only sprint where Bourg St. Maurice had both last year.

Racing [classic and sprint] is divided into the following classes: K1M, K1W, C1M, C1W, and C2M (individual and team in canoe races). C1W is a relatively new discipline and every international competition has positive ramifications for wildwater sport.

Each country can have four boats per class, a total of 20 with a maximum of 22 competitors.

Team Czech Republic

The Czech Republic will have a full house except in C1W which only has two athletes; Radka Valíková and Lenka Lagnerová.

Including Valíková and Lagnerová, those competing are: Ondřej Rolenc (individual Bronze in downriver, Bourg St. Maurice), Tomáš Slovák (Silver team race, Bourg St. Maurice), Anna Zástěrová (7th at this year's Euros), Lukáš Tomek (individual sprint Bronze, Bourg St. Maurice) Michal Šrámek and many more.

In Solkan there will be 18 Czech boats and 19 competitors. Ambitions are high as the Czech Republic brought home ten medals (four individual, six team) last year; interest in this year's competition is high.

Results World Championships La Plagne 2012

Calender

Wildwater racers will have a very busy June; immediately after the Worlds competitors must focus on the first two World Cup competitions in Banja-Luca, Bosnia-Herzegovina. Then the last weekend is June is dedicated to World Cup races 3 and 4 in Valtelina, Italy – this does mean four races in nine days!

Event website 2013 World Championships: www.socakayak.si/sp_eng/eng/