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Marathon

Long distance endurance and strategy

While in Flatwater Racing events, paddlers race on a straight course, Marathon Racing involves paddling sleek racing craft over long distances, on either the flatwater of lakes, and dams, or the flowing water of a river. Traditional Marathon Racing competitions, like ICF World Cup and World Championships, involve a fixed flatwater course with regular portages, where the paddler must carry the canoe or kayak. Each race lasts approximately 3 hours.

Many popular marathons are raced down sections of river, where the paddler must negociate the currents, rapids or weirs, or else portage around these obstacles. Some of these events attract over 2000 athletes each year and are often run inseveral stages over several days.

DOCUMENTS can be found here.

ECA Competitions

2025 ECA Canoe Marathon European ...
June 2. - 8. 2025, Ponte de Lima, POR
2026 ECA Canoe Marathon European ...
January 1. 2026, Pitesti, ROU
2027 ECA Canoe Marathon European ...
January 1. 2027, Mirandela, POR
All competitions

NEWS

The 20th Vohandu Marathon Broke Records and Enjoyed Summer-like Weather
The 20th Vohandu Marathon Broke Records and Enjoyed Summer-like Weather

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.

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The largest paddling marathon in the world – Vohandu Marathon – sees a record number of ...
The largest paddling marathon in the world – Vohandu Marathon – sees a record number of ...

The upcoming weekend marks the 20th anniversary of the Võhandu Marathon, with more than 3200 paddlers registered in 1415 boats, representing 30 different countries.

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The deadline for entries to the 2025 ECA Canoe Marathon European Championships is approaching

Portugal, Canoe Marathon superpower, will host the 2025 ECA Canoe Marathon European Championships from 2nd to 8th June. The competition week in Ponte de Lima will include Senior, U23 and Junior events, as well as Masters races and paracanoe demonstration races. Before the championships, the 2025 ECA Marathon Talent Identification Camp will be held, and the deadline for applications is 14th April.

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