A reduced New Zealand canoe slalom team head into the third ICF world cup of the season in Slovenia this weekend with a few weighty challenges.

Tauranga C1 paddler Patrick Washer has had to return home after injuring his shoulder in Slovakia last week.  The 21-year-old national champion will have scans to see how much of the season he'll miss, after suffering a partial dislocation near the end of his first run on the Bratislava course.

And after her historic silver medal in the women's K1, Luuka Jones is also heading home - albeit for a break and to catch up with family.  She'll be back for the final world cup of the season in Prague.

It will be left to the rest of the team - K1 men Finn Butcher, Callum Gilbert and Jack Dangen, C1's Ben Gibb and females Hannah Thomas (who will race both C1 and K1) and K1 paddler Kensa Randle - to tackle the tricky course.

The Tacen Whitewater Course, on the Sava River in Ljubljana, is one of the oldest recognised canoe slalom courses still in use today, having hosted the 1955 canoe slalom world championships and features the legendary 'drop' near the top.

"The team is adapting well to Tacen, especially the drop at the start," national performance programme coach Shaun Pearce said. "There's lots of learning taking place and it's all coming together for the race - hopefully we can keep on a roll."

Already this season, Gilbert and Butcher have recorded their best world cup results - Gilbert reaching the final and finishing fifth in London and Butcher finishing 13th in Slovakia - while 17-year-old Thomas also made the C1 semifinals last week.

Last year's world cup round in Tacen had to be cut short because of flash-flooding, giving athletes and organisers alike extra incentive to make this year's event special.

Jamie Troughton

Article added: Friday 28 June 2019