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Thomas Konietzko who was president of the DKV for the past eleven years was elected as president of the International Canoe Federation earlier this month, so he left his position in German canoeing. The new president became Jens Perlwitz, a well-known name in world canoeing.

 

73-year-old Jens Perlwitz has been involved in sports since the mid 70s, first as a volunteer, later as a coach. In 1991 Perlwitz was a team manager at the Wildwater Canoeing World Championships in Bovec on the Soča River, the last sporting event held in Yugoslavia before Slovenia declared its independence. In 1997 he was appointed to the wildwater canoeing committee of the ICF, where he served as a chairman from 2006 to 2016. Between 2006 and 2014 Perlwitz was President of the Hessian Canoe Association, of which he was named Honorary President after his departure. From 2001 until today he has been Vice President of the German Canoe Federation for competitive sports.

 

Perlwitz is the tenth president in the 100-year history of the German Canoe Federation.

 

“It is a huge honour for me to be able to lead the German Canoe Federation as President. We will have to face the increased demands on our association, be it in recreational or competitive sports. But of course I don't want to change all the well-functioning things at DKV. After all, we inherit an excellently organised association from Thomas. I guarantee that we will continue to cultivate the wonderful culture of togetherness in canoeing and that we will come to joint decisions about the future of the DKV and the sport. So, even if many people know me from competitive sports, I want to be a middle-class president. Whether competition or leisure, no matter what type of boat - what unites us all is the love of paddling,” said the newly elected president.

 

During the elections Thomas Konietzko was elected honorary president of the DKV, Karl Hauck and Joachim Schwarzrock were elected asvice-presidents for the field of competitive sport following a change in the statutes. “We realized that the range of tasks and expectations in competitive sport has grown enormously,” said Perlwitz. “It makes sense that we have to position ourselves more broadly and distribute the challenges of the future on more shoulders.” Ulrike Schreck, who had been acting vice-president until now, was also confirmed in her office and elected for four years. In addition, the first chairwoman of Youth Canoeing Luisa Glaab was elected as Youth Vice-President. The offices of Peter Ludwig (Vice President Interior and Finance) and Isa Winter-Brand (recreational sports) were not available for election. For the first time, the Presidium of the German Canoe ederation has seven representatives with voting rights.