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The race, held at the same venue that hosted the ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships a decade ago, saw participation of athletes representing Germany, Czechia, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Finland.

 

In the men’s kayak final, German paddler Noah Hegge claimed victory with the fastest run, despite a gate touch that added two penalty seconds. Michal Pasiut of Poland finished second, just 0.27 seconds behind, while fellow Pole Mateusz Polaczyk, who also had a penalty, came third, trailing the winner by 1.29 seconds. Slovak Jakub Grigar, who led the heats, received eight penalty seconds in the final and ultimately placed tenth.

 

In the women’s canoe final, former European champion Gabriela Satkova of Czechia delivered a clean run to secure the win. Reigning European champion Andrea Herzog of Germany picked up four penalty seconds and had to settle for second place, despite being faster on the course. She finished 0.68 seconds behind Satkova. The two had swapped positions from the heats, where Herzog had been in the lead and Satkova just behind. Lena Teunissen of the Netherlands placed third.

 

In the men’s canoe final, Olympic medallist Lukas Rohan of Czechia, who had just barely made it into the final from the heats, delivered a much stronger performance in the decisive run and took the win by 0.55 seconds over Germany’s Hannes Trummer, the top athlete of the heats. Czech Vaclav Chaloupka, 2021 World Champion, finished third.

 

In the closely contested women’s kayak final, Tokyo Olympic champion Ricarda Funk of Germany emerged victorious. Despite a gate touch, she finished 0.53 seconds ahead of second-placed Gabriela Satkova (CZE). Slovak Sona Stanovska took third place, trailing by 0.85 seconds.

 

The weekend also featured Kayak Cross events. In the men’s Individual Race, German Stefan Hengst took the win, joined on the podium by Polish athlete Mateusz Polaczyk and fellow German Enrico Dietz. In the women’s Individual Kayak Cross, the top three were Ricarda Funk (GER), Klaudia Zwolinska (POL), and Annkatrin Plochmann (GER). Funk also won the elimination Kayak Cross race on Sunday, with Klaudia Zwolinska (POL) finishing second and Paulina Pirro (GER) third. In the men's event, Mateusz Polaczyk (POL) took the win, followed by Germans Noah Hegge and Niels Zimmermann.

 

Spectators in Germany also enjoyed the Short Slalom races across four events. In the men’s kayak race, the top spots went to Germans Stefan Hengst and Jonas Benzien, as well as Michal Pasiut (POL). In the women’s canoe, the podium featured Gabriela Satkova (CZE), Andrea Herzog (GER), and Tereza Kneblova (CZE). In the men’s canoe, the top three were Vojtech Heger (CZE), Lukas Rohan (CZE), and Timo Trummer (GER). In the women’s kayak, Lucie Nesnidalova (CZE), Antonie Galuskova (CZE), and Klaudia Zwolinska (POL) claimed the top three spots.