On Saturday, 19th April, the 20th Vohandu Marathon celebrated its anniversary with remarkable participation numbers and unseasonably warm weather. Recognised as the world’s largest paddling marathon, this year’s event brought nearly 3,000 paddlers from 30 countries to the Voru and Polva regions of Estonia. A record-breaking 1,341 boats lined up at the starting line.
Participants arrived not only from across Europe, but also from countries such as the United States, New Zealand, and Zimbabwe, demonstrating the truly global reach of the Vohandu Marathon.
While the course record remained unbroken this year, the competition showcased a high level of athletic performance. The marathon was won by Czech K2 Lukas Horak and Oldrich Dasek, who completed the 100-kilometre distance in 7:51:24. Although their time was 27 minutes short of the course record organisers noted that with higher water levels the record might well have been broken.
Second place went to last year’s winners Pieter Paauw and François Boucher from France with a time of 8:10:07. The third position was claimed by Swedish kayaker Martin Nordstrand, who finished the challenge in 8:21:23.
The best women’s result came from Estonians Linda Tetsmann and Anette Baum, who placed fourth overall with a time of 8:21:58, missing the podium by just 35 seconds.
The fastest time of the day was actually achieved outside the official competition, in the men’s triple kayak– Lithuanians Arunas Dubauskas, Deividas Satikas, and Vaidas Linkevicius crossed the finish line in 7:44:52.
The marathon’s cut-off time was 24 hours. The final boat reached the finish line early Sunday morning at 06:25, completing the 100-kilometre Vohandu River Marathon in 22 hours and 25 minutes. A total of 1,245 boats finished the race, resulting in a high completion rate of nearly 93%.
In addition to participation records, the event also set a weather record – afternoon temperatures soared to 28°C, an unusually warm figure for April, adding an extra layer of challenge for competitors.
Next, 21st Vohandu Marathon, will take place on the 18th April 2026.
Full results are available at:
vm.vohandumaraton.ee/ee/results/2025
More information:
https://www.vohandumaraton.ee/
20.4.2025
