Discover beach kayaking, this great sport that could be included in the program of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games

On June 24, Juliette Nerat and Vincent Cavard, two Savoyard rowers, became champions of France in the mixed pair of beach rowing, at the Xenifex in Haute-Savoie. In vogue, this rowing system could benefit from a major spotlight in five years, during the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, in 2028.

Running on the beach, jumping on a boat, and then sailing, these are the main characteristics of beach kayaking, this new escalating rowing system.

Yvonneg Foucault, Technical Director at the French Rowing Federation (FFA), sums up this new event with “dCoastal paddling and sprinting on the beach in duel mode, like a tennis tournamentUnlike what might be seen in classic competitions, coastal rowing takes place on large lakes and in the sea, as its name suggests.

French Championships This sport took place last weekend at Excenevex in Haute-Savoie. Juliette Nerat and Vincent Cavard, two rowers from Chambéry-le-Bourget Yacht Club, won the mixed double on Lake Geneva.

The test takes place in three stages. Departure from the beach 50 meters from the boat. The two teams, singly or in groups, must run towards their boat before performing a 250-meter slalom between three buoys, then return as fast as they can in a straight line on the shore. The final segment corresponds to the final sprint towards the bell, to stop the timer.

Born in 2015, during the Mediterranean Beach Games in Pescara, Italy, this discipline never ceases to fascinate rowers. “Coastal kayaking has been around for 30 years and has been modernized by beach kayakingIvong Foucault explains.

During the last World Championships, more than 30 countries were represented. “We have Olympic champions (rowers) from New Zealand and Great Britain. It’s a really high system“, confirms the framework of the FFA. Again this year, appointments are numerous, with the organization of European Championships in France, in Seyne-sur-Mer, near Toulon. In addition, beach kayaking will enter the Games Beach World, organized by the Association of National Olympic Committees in Bali next August.

The rise of this system is the desire of the highest blasphemy powers: “It is the international federation that has done its best to ensure that it is on the World Beach Games programme. “

So the next step is to incorporate it into the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. How? The International Federation usesOffensive strategyTo replace lightweight classes with this practice “Most exciting and very motivating for most practitioners”Yvonig Foucaud describes.

During the early years of beach rowing, France was the country of reference, both in the Mediterranean Games and the World Games. But since last year, the level has tightened up and has been overtaken by leading countries in this sport such as New Zealand, Great Britain, the United States and Spain. “Last year, we went even lower. We got a lot of fourth places. At the European Championships, we found ourselves in the top two nations. We are very strong at coastal kayaking, but the level will go up. It will be difficult for us to control all groups.“

The future of beach rowing as an Olympic discipline was supposed to be known in June. But the federations will have to wait until September or October before they get a final answer. If validated, both the men’s and women’s singles races will be incorporated into the Olympic rowing programme.