2015 ICF World Championships Slalom
 
1
2
3
K1M
CZ J. PRSKAVEC
PL M. POLACZYK
US M. SMOLEN
K1W
CZ K. KUDEJOVA
DE R. FUNK
DE M. PFEIFER
C1M
GB D. FLORENCE
SI B. SAVSEK
GB R. WESTLEY
C1W
AU J. FOX
CZ K. HOSKOVA
ES N. VILARRUBLA
C2
DE ANTON/BENZIEN
FR PICCO/BISO
FR KLAUSS/PECHE

Extreme

The top 3 ladies about the 2012 Whitewater Grand Prix in Chile

1. Nouria Newman 2. Martina Wegman 3. Katrina van Wijk

nouria newman france chile whitewater grand prix extreme river kayak canoe tribe sportscene

Both the Gol Gol and Futaleufu were my favorite rivers. I loved the Gol Gol because it had many good drops within a 5 minutes race course, and Salto del Indio is super scary ! (I only ran it once though). And the Futaleufu because it's such a beautiful place with some big WHITEWATER.

I was intimidated at every single race of the WWGP but I was definitely more nervous at the start of the Gol Gol river than at any other races. It was the first stage and the water levels were high; full on water levels and brown water always make it more intimidating.

I really enjoyed the times we spent all together off the water at Lorenezo's house and at the Futa. It was great to get the chance to know everyone, share our passion, our river stories and our cultures. Other highlights included seeing most of the boys as intimidated as I was at the start of the Gol Gol race, having the-almost-perfect-run on the Puesco race, and seeing everyone happy on the river and super excited when we first ran the Futa all together.

I enjoyed each of the rivers we raced on during the WWGP. Stage 1, the Rio Gol Gol, was for me the most intimidating race of the WWGP. When you miss a line, the water can easily hold you under for a few seconds. Coming into those rapids knowing that (and out of breath), made the race more intense, especially as it was the first race of the series.

It was great to switch halfway through the event from steep creek to big whitewater. The drive and ferry down to the Futaleufu was amazing and after a weekof intense racing on steep creeks it was nice to arrive to the big water in the Futaleufu valley. I love that the Futaleufu is very remote and has a dense forest, everything is so stunning in the area and the rivers are amazing. The Futaleufu was less intense and I really enjoyed the pushy and unpredictable roller-coaster ride down massive waves.

I am stoked to have been part of the Whitewater Grand Prix! It has been such an amazing and privileged experience. The WWGP is pushing the sport to its limits and showcasing the sport in a unique and fantastic way! I am very glad Patrick Camblin had his inspiring and ambitious dream to organize this amazing event and was able to pull this off together with a great team.

I enjoyed every river for their own differences. If I had to pick it would be the Rio Gol Gol, big water rowdy drops are right up my alley. But the Rio Futaleufu would be a close 2nd because of its massive features comparable to my home river - The Ottawa - during Spring flood. The Nevados was amazing as well; the Put-in slide was super steep and awesome, and then it dropped into the gorge which had continuous treats.

I had traveled to Patagonia one month prior to the start of the WWGP to kayak as many Rivers as I could from what Chile and Argentina have to offer. I think this was the best preparation for myself, because once the WWGP rolled around I had been paddling everyday on Class 5 and running bigger and more technical drops. I felt ready to charge the competition.

I felt strong and confident on every river we competed on however Stage 1 on the Rio Gol Gol was the most intimidating for me, as it was the first competition I had competed in for awhile and I needed to find my competitive groove. It was also tricky to know what to expect, I had never truly competed against any of the other women, and the water was rising by the minute with the continuous downpour.