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Each of them is the guardian of one tree, and next to it is a memorial that reminds us of the unique successes at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. The event we witnessed in Tacen is just one of the actions of sustainable development carried out by the Canoe Federation of Slovenia in the framework of cooperation in the project of Zavarovalnica Triglav 'Let's secure the future', cooperation in sustainable development with the International Canoe Federation and similar project in collaboration with the Italian Canoe Federation.

In the company of the Mayor of Ljubljana Zoran Janković and the director of the public institution Sport Ljubljana Tatjana Polajnar, silver medallist from Atlanta Andraž Vehovar, silver medallist from Rio Peter Kauzer and gold medallist from Tokyo Benjamin Savšek symbolically planted lindens, which are honey plants.

“The wish of all athletes and especially us - representatives of sports that take place in nature - is that the climate and thus our environment change as little as possible. Long droughts and sudden floods make it impossible for us to train and compete without any problems,” said the director of the Canoe Federation of Slovenia Andrej Jelenc.

“I am just happy to be here. Thank you for this beautiful gesture, to commemorate these beautiful successes by planting trees on the home course where the best kayakers and canoeists in the world are being raised. I am glad that we also took care of nature at the same time,” said the golden Olympian Savšek.

Peter Kauzer has a similar opinion: “I am extremely honoured to be one of the three winners of the Olympic medal in the history of Slovenian canoeing. It's nice that they remember all the successes in this way, and I hope that another trees will join them in the future.”

The first winner of the Olympic canoe slalom medal in the history of Slovenian kayaking, Andraž Vehovar, had the honour of being the first to plant a tree. “Thank you for the invitation and this nice gesture. It’s nice to see that the things we’ve done in life aren’t just for us, but for the wider community, and that what we’ve done means something to someone else, not just us. I do not return to Tacen regularly enough, so I may come more often now, as I will have to water my tree,” joked Vehovar.

The planting of trees is just one of the campaigns organised by KZS in an effort for sustainable development. This is not just a gesture, and planting trees should not be just a compensation for acting as a global sport that leaves a large carbon footprint. It is only part of a mosaic of many measures that we need to take and internalize in order for our activities to contribute to sustainable development. With this in mind and in the spirit of sustainable development, KZS will also organize this year's ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup, which will take place in Ljubljana - Tacen from 24th to 26th June.

We will strive to reduce the use of plastic packaging as much as possible, set up waste separation islands, promote the use of bicycles and public transport to visit the competition, organizers will use electric cars, promote locally grown and healthy food, prepare environmental workshops…

This will only be a continuation and upgrade of the efforts to preserve the environment, which the Canoe Federation of Slovenia started more than 10 years ago with the Water Forever campaign, which raises awareness of participants in recreational canoeing events about the importance of clean waters. As an ambassador of clean water and sanitation, one of the 17 sustainable goals of the United Nations, the Canoe Federation of Slovenia also participates in the project of Zavarovalnica Triglav – ‘Let's secure the future’.