The Argentina Canoe Federation's partnership with clubs nationwide to develop canoe and kayak sports has seen significant progress in the last two years.
Led by national coach Mabel Borga, the Technification and Training Centers (CTFs) project began in 2022 with the aim of developing young talents in the country.
As part of the high-performance development programme, the project trains athletes identified based on their technical aptitudes.
Argentina is the second largest country in South America and to make sure athletes from every region get equal opportunities, these training centres are spread out.
It covers northern provinces such as Misiones, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, and Santa Fe. In Buenos Aires, it is located in Tigre and other cities and areas such as Viedma, Patagonia, Necochea, and Baradero.
“Several regional centres were created to allow young athletes in the junior and cadet categories to train at their clubs, supervised by our project, without having to travel long distances,” Borga said.
“So the clubs provide the structure, boats and food, while the federation provides the technical management and work planning, promoting a real collective effort.”
The centres also have boats that are legacies of the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games.
From 96 athletes in 2022, the numbers have grown to around 200, with many of them showcasing their abilities and performing well at the Olympic Hopes Regatta and the South American Canoe Sprint Championships.
In the long term, the aim is to ensure these paddlers are ready for high-level competitions, with this year's focus on the Binational Cup, an internal event between the CTFs, that will see athletes from other South American countries invited.
All centres in the country have a separate coach with Borga supervising and ensuring detailed monitoring of the athletes' progress.
“It's a comprehensive preparation in all categories. In the cadet category, they enter another CTF, which we put into operation this year, which is the first-year junior category, where athletes from the A and B finals of the national selective tournaments are asked to work with a specific coach, to prepare them more directly for the junior category, where they can take part in world-class competitions,” Borga said.
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Pictures by COPAC and Argentina Canoe Federation.
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