Santorini Experience is postponed to October 1-3, 2021

Athens, September 29, 2020 – The top sports event Santorini Experience, which endorses the volcanic island of Cyclades for its sports tourism is postponed to October 1-3, 2021. Despite the dynamic efforts and the provision of all necessary permits, licenses and approvals of health protocols for the safe and smooth implementation of the Santorini Experience in 2020, the event, which has been successfully assigned for the last six years to Active Media Group by the Municipal Sports Cultural Environmental Organization of Santorini (DAPPOS www.dappos.gr), will not take place in 2020.

 

Santorini Experience, is the annual sports appointment of Santorini, attracting professional and amateur athletes from Greece and abroad, while presenting unique running activities with a breathtaking view, on the path that connects Oia with Fira and an open water swimming race from the volcano to the old port of Fira. The appointment for the award-winning sea tourism event, with the running and swimming audience, is renewed for October 1-3, 2021.

 

Approval of Health Protocols

Santorini Experience had received the approval of the Hellenic Swimming Federation for the implementation of the swimming event and the approval of the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS) for the implementation of the running races.

At the same time, Active Media Group had acquired the approval of the Health Scientific Committee of the General Secretariat of Sports, through the strict distinct health protocols it designed for running and swimming respectively, while successfully passing the tests of the World Health Organization and World Athletics.

 

Registrations: Refund or Transfer of Participations to 2021

Active Media Group, always prioritizing the best service of its participants, offers the possibility of a refund to all runners and swimmers who had already completed their registration for Santorini Experience 2020 or alternatively the possibility of transferring their participation to the 2021 event.

Participants who had completed their registration will receive additional information within the following week, regarding the possibility of transferring their registration to the respective event of 2021 or its cancellation and refund of their registration fee.

 

A big thank you

Thank you is a magical word, with tremendous power, full of love, affection, kindness, humility and gratitude. That is why we will repeat it several times.

 

We wish to thank the people of Santorini, those who proved what solidarity, ethics, support, innovation, sustainability, creativity, quality and vision mean, when society needed it, when Greek tourism needed it.  

 

We especially wish to thank the foreign participants, the foreign champions, the swimmers’ groups from abroad and the foreign journalists for their patience and understanding.

 

We would like to thank the members of the national swimming team, the Olympic medalists and world champions, the technical directors of the races and all professional and amateur participants for the interest they showed until the very last minute to take part in the top sea tourism event.

 

Active Media Group wishes to express a big thank you to all sponsors, supporters and partners, all the Greek and foreign media who stood alongside throughout the year and thank them for all their physical and ethical support.  

 

An event that managed to achieve something unprecedented, to unite major companies of the island, top entrepreneurs, not only of the Greek tourism industry, but in a worldwide scale. An event that was rewarded for the excellence of its best practices at the Greek Tourism Awards, the Sports Marketing Awards and the Ermis Awards receiving foreign distinctions and awards, respectively.

 

We are deeply sorry that just three (3) days before the start of the event we need to postpone it. An event that we undertake for six consecutive years as a contractor by the Municipal Sports Cultural Environmental Organization of Santorini (DAPPOS), having prepared everything for its implementation, from the ending of 2019 until today and having the assent of the competent body from the state, that is, the approval of the Health Scientific Committee of the General Secretariat of Sports, the only competent authority for the approval of the event’s health protocol in conditions of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

 

In the aspect of healthcare, no consent or any additional action is required, nor the ratification by another body (e.g. Ministry, National Public Health Organization [EODY]), as the Health Scientific Committee of the General Secretariat of Sports is the competent authority for sports events. In fact, the Committee is in constant contact with the sports committee of EODY for all current developments and more. We should not forget that when we talk about competence, we are talking about legal authority and the most fundamental form of the concept of competence is the constitutional distinction of the functions of a State.

 

Events will continue to take place, as they were recently held in Evia, Rethymno, Ioannina, as we all must learn to live in the new normal, with safety rules and strict protection measures, as set by the state.

Without fear, but with logic.

We close with the same video that we opened the year 2020 and set an appointment for 2021:

https://youtu.be/JI9skJenaEc

 

Athina Luxury Suites, Vikos Natural Mineral Water and Blue Star Ferries were the event’s official sponsors.

Luanvi was the event’s official sports supplier.

Boatmen Union Santorini was the event’s official supporter.

Avance was the official car rental partner.

Messinian Spa was the event’s official beauty partner.

SKAI was the premium TV partner.

24MEDIA was the premium media partner.

Red Swim Academy, Swim Academy, Leandros and Swimmingclub.gr were the athletic partners of Santorini Experience.

The event was assisted by Lifeguard Patrol, Voluntary Lifeguards of Santorini, Atlantis Dive Center, Santorini Nautical Club and Caldera Yachting.

 

Tangopapas.com was the event’s travel partner.

 

In these difficult times, this year’s event was supported with amazing offers and prices by the following hospitality sponsors: Athina Luxury Suites, Santo Maris Oia Luxury Suites & Spa, Canaves Oia, Katikies Santorini, Andronis Arcadia, West East Suites, K&K Unique Holiday Homes, Folia Bianca, Cocoon Suites, Marvarit Suites, Iriana Suites, Nefeles Luxury Suites, Sienna Resort, Santo Houses, Memories Hotel, 270 Oia’s View, Cori Rigas Suites, Uma Ray Suites, Loizos Stylish Residencies, Monolithia, Fanouris Condo, Epavlis Hotel, Iokasti Villa, Olive Cave Houses, Panorama Boutique Hotel, Esperas Santorini and Santorini Hospitality.

 

Santorini Experience had joined the Greek actions of the #BeactiveHellas 2020 programme of the European Commission which is held under the auspices of the General Secretariat of Sports.

Running races were organized along with AS Ifestos Thiras and EAS SEGAS Cyclades Region.

The event joined the swimming community Global Swim Series (GSS) and the running community World’s Marathons.

 #santoriniexperience

 Website: www.santorini-experience.com

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/SantoriniExperience

Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/santoriniexperience/

Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/Sant_Experience

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGconq7q45TYim8qFg71XlA 

 

NEW ZEALAND - AON 2020 SHORT COURSE CHAMPIONSHIPS UPDATE

Swimming New Zealand is extremely disappointed that we have been forced to make the difficult decision to not permit swimmers from within the Auckland City boundary (the Auckland and Counties swimming regions) to compete at the Aon 2020 NZ Short Course Championships, whilst the Auckland region remains in Level 2 restrictions.

We had originally received approval last week for the Event Management Plan to host the event with Aucklanders attending safely, housed outside in multiple marquees of up to 100 each. However, this week, the Hamilton City Council has adjusted its interpretation of the Level 2 restrictions for Aucklanders and is now restricting the total number of Aucklanders allowed on-site to 100 per session. (There are currently 213 Auckland swimmers entered plus coaches and managers, so close to 300 Aucklanders in total). We have considered all possible options to continue hosting the event with Aucklanders competing, but given the stringent restrictions now put in place, this is no longer possible. Therefore, Auckland swimmers will no longer be able to compete at the event while Auckland is under a Level 2 restriction.

With the government updating Auckland’s Alert Level on Monday 5 October and the likelihood that Auckland’s Level restriction will drop to Level 1 at 11.59 pm on Wednesday 7 October,  Aucklanders will be welcome to compete in the events they have entered in from Thursday onwards should the Alert Level drop to Level 1.

We deeply regret the need to exclude Aucklanders from (hopefully) the first two days of the event but we simply cannot operate the event in accordance with Hamilton City Councils requirements, with a large number of Aucklanders entered. We hope that if Auckland moves to Level 1 on Wed 7th October, we will look forward to seeing Aucklanders racing from Thursday 8th.

Information relating to refunds for Tuesday and Wednesday’s events will be circulated shortly.

 Swimming New Zealand

 

Weltklasse im Wasserspringen bei den Schweizer Meisterschaften 2020 vom 2. – 4. Oktober in Zürich

Am Wochenende des 2. – 4. Oktober werden im Hallenbad Zürich-Oerlikon die Schweizer Meisterschaften 2020 ausgetragen. Der ungewöhnliche Termin ergab sich, einmal mehr, aufgrund der Covid-19 Pandemie, weswegen die Sommer-Meisterschaften für Jugend und Elite abgesagt werden mussten. Es handelt sich um einen Wettkampf auf höchstem Niveau, in welchem die gesamten Schweizer Nationalmannschaften Elite und Jugend teilnehmen werden.

Dem Wettkampf kommt auch aufgrund der Olympiavorbereitung eine grosse Bedeutung zu. Die  Selektion zu den olympischen Spielen wird bereits Ende Februar 2021 am Weltcup in Tokyo erfolgen. Da ungewiss ist, wie viele Möglichkeiten die Springer bis dann noch haben werden, sich international und national zu zeigen.

Regina O’Dell, Präsidentin des Veranstalters: ‘Verein Zürcher Wasserspinger’: „Ich freue mich sehr, ein derart hochstehendes Teilnehmerfeld in Zürich begrüssen zu dürfen. Die Präsenz aller Schweizer Spitzenspringer nach langer Wettkampfpause aufgrund der Pandemie lässt spannende Wettkämpfe erwarten !“

Patrik Gisel, Sportdirektor Swiss Aquatics Diving: „Die Schweizer Meisterschaften 2020 werden ein Highlight unseres Sports, und wir sind stolz darauf, den Schweizer Wasserspring-Sport an so einem tollen Veranstaltungsort mit professioneller Organisation zeigen zu dürfen.“

 

De la classe mondiale lors des Championnats suisses 2020 de plongeon du 2 au 4 octobre à Zurich

Le week-end du 2 au 4 octobre, la piscine couverte de Zurich-Oerlikon accueillera les championnats suisses 2020. Cette date inhabituelle est, une fois de plus, due à la pandémie de Covid-19, qui nous avait contraint à annuler les championnats d'été jeunesse et élite. Il s'agit d'une compétition au plus haut niveau à laquelle participeront toutes les équipes nationales suisses, élite et jeunesses.

La compétition est également très importante pour les préparatifs des Jeux olympiques. La sélection pour les Jeux olympiques aura déjà lieu fin février 2021 lors de la Coupe du monde à Tokyo. Comme on ne sait pas encore combien de possibilités les plongeurs auront de se présenter au niveau international et national d'ici là, la compétition est d'une grande importance.

Regina O'Dell, présidente de l'organisateur : "Verein Zürcher Wasserspinger" : "Je suis très heureuse de pouvoir accueillir à Zurich un tel regroupement de participants de haut niveau. La présence de tous les meilleurs plongeurs suisses après une longue interruption de la compétition en raison de la pandémie nous fait espérer d'assister à des épreuves passionnantes !

Patrik Gisel, directeur sportif de Swiss Diving : "Les championnats suisses 2020 seront un moment fort de notre sport, et nous sommes fiers de pouvoir présenter le plongeon suisse dans un lieu aussi formidable avec une organisation professionnelle".

Lena Schneuwly

Administration Swiss Aquatics Diving

LEN Champions League, Qualification Draw 18 teams for two spots – new playing format for the main round

Today the draw has been made for the qualification round of the Champions League. Eighteen teams entered for this phase but due to the current provisions in Europe because of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is only one qualification round, played in two sites. LEN also decided to play the 10 rounds of the Champions League main round in ‘bubble format’ in three stages, using two venues at each occasion.

At its last meeting, the LEN Bureau agreed to use a special playing format in order to secure that the Champions League can go all the way in the coming season. The ten rounds shall be played in three stages at two venues each time: teams of the same group will contest three rounds (one time four) at these ‘bubble tournaments’ where the participants shall be isolated for the entire duration of the event.

“We wish to restart our activities in the pools and offer the opportunity to our athletes to compete again” LEN President Paolo Barelli said. “At the same time, in the given circumstances, we have to ensure that the athletes’ health and well-being are fully protected. We are to organise these events in close cooperation with the federations and the clubs and make sure that our safety guidelines are strictly implemented.”

Since LEN decided to cut the number of teams in the main round to 12 for this season, besides the 10 wild-card holders only two spots are available and this makes the qualification tournaments much tougher than usual. Only the winners of the respective groups can join the Champions League – while the field features 13 teams which spent at least one season in the prelims in recent years, but most of them were regular participants and Final Eight contenders.

In the qualification round, the teams were drawn to two groups and then divided into two sub-groups. In the sub-groups four or five teams shall play a round robin tournament and then the first ranked sides of the two subgroups will play for the Champions League spot. The others will also play to decide the final rankings as the 16 non-qualifying sides can continue in the Euro Cup and their placements here will determine the batches used for the draw in the second-tier cup.

The qualification round is scheduled for 11-15 November.

Draw for the Champions League Qualifications

Group A

To be played in Siracusa (ITA)

A1

Ortigia Siracusa (ITA)

CN Barcelona (ESP)

Steaua Bucharest (ROU)

Jadran Split (CRO)

Primorac Kotor           (MNE)

 

A2

VK Szolnok (HUN)

Mladost Zagreb (CRO)

Paix d’Aix        (FRA)

Ydraikos          (GRE)

 

Group B

To be played in Budapest (HUN)

B1

OSC Budapest (HUN)

Sintez Kazan (RUS)

Radnicki Kragujevac (SRB)

CN Terrassa (ESP)

Tourcoing (FRA)

B2

Vouliagmeni (GRE)

AN Brescia (ITA)

CSM Oradea (ROU)

Enka Istanbul (TUR)

Neda News - 1a Swim Maresme 20K by HEAD el dia 10 d'octubre

1A SWIM MARESME 20K BY HEAD

La Swim Maresme by Head no és una travessia qualsevol. Es tracta de recòrrer una distància de 20 quilòmetres, per grups de velocitat, i en grups reduïts, cada un amb una embarcació de seguiment. El recorregut transcorre per les poblacions de Canet, Sant Pol, Calella, Pineda i Santa Susana, per finalitzar a Malgrat de Mar.

Una travessia amb grups de velocitat

•Es crearan 3 grups de velocitat: 3km/h, 3,5km/h i 4km/h.

•Cada grup estarà format per 15 nedadors i 2 embarcacions de suport. L'únic requisit és que el grup vagi sempre compactat per poder donar suport a qualsevol dels nedadors en tot moment.

•El personal de Neda el Món que vagi a les embarcacions de suport us proporcionaran l'avituallment cada 45 minuts.

Podeu consultar tota la informació sobre la Swim Maresme by HEAD aquí. https://www.nedaelmon.com/ca/Activitats/Detalls/6895

 

11A NEDA EL MÓN ILLES MEDES PER LA MARATÓ TV3 BY ZOGGS

Per a aquells que no coneixeu la travessia, és una travessia solidària que destina íntegrament els seus beneficis a la Marató de TV3, que enguany es centra en la lluita contra el coronavirus.

Per a aquells amb més experiència teniu la travessia de 5.200m, que dona la volta a la Meda Gran, i també teniu les de 3.400m i 1.700m. Us podeu inscriure a la travessia fent click aquí, on trobareu també més informació de cada distància per separat.

Volem reitrar que a dia d'avui estem fent seguiment dels avanços del coronaviurs, i que en tot moment es respectaran els protocols de seguretat estipulats per la Generalitat de Catalunya i el Procicat.

Esperem poder fer la nostra aportació a la lluita contra el coronavirus amb la celebració de la 11a Neda el Món Illes Medes per la Marató de TV3 by Zoggs.

World Triathlon announces dates for the Valencia World Cup and allocates 100,000 USD for the 2020 bonus pool prize money

World Triathlon announces dates for the Valencia World Cup and allocates 100,000 USD for the 2020 bonus pool prize money

The Executive Board of World Triathlon has approved the new dates for the 2020 Valencia World Cup, that will take place in the iconic Spanish coastal city on November 7-8. The race, that will put an end to the 2020 World Cup season, was due to take place originally in May but was postponed when the COVID 19 pandemic started to hit the world. 

World Triathlon’s Executive Board also approved to allocate 100,000 USD for the Bonus Pool Prize Money for the 2020 World Triathlon Ranking, which will be distributed after the last scoring event in 2020. The Ranking is applicable for events didn’t score this year for the World Ranking after it has been frozen till the last event no later than December 15, 2020.

The events that will count for this Ranking will be the Hamburg World Triathlon Series (1000 points) and the Mooloolaba, Karlovy Vary, Arzachena and Valencia World Cups, with 500 points each, with Continental Cups taking place in this period will give 250 points each. The athlete score will be the addition of the points earned in a maximum of four events if the total number of events is eight or more during this period, or only three events counting if less.

World Triathlon, as many other international sport organization, was forced to hit the pause button to all International competitions in March, when the effect of the pandemic worldwide, as well as the imposture of travel restrictions in many territories, forced the season to be put on hold.

But with the world’s top elite athletes already having returned to competition in Hamburg WTS and Karlovy Vary World Cup in the previous weeks, it is now time for the greatest athletes from all over the world to head to Arzachena and Valencia to put a bright end to this unusual season. Unfortunately, the World Cups of Miyazaki (Japan) and Huatulco (Mexico) have been officially cancelled for the 2020 season, due to the impact of the pandemic on their respective territories.

The 2020 World Triathlon Valencia World Cup will welcome 65 male and 65 female elite athletes from all over the world on a sprint distance circuit that has already hosted in 2019 the Paratriathlon and U23 European Championships.

The event will take place following all the rules and regulations of the local government regarding COVID-19, and implementing all the health and safety measures that World Triathlon has already put in place in all the events organized in the last weeks, including temperature screenings, contact tracing and social distance measures. The health and safety of athletes, coaches, officials, staff, volunteers and spectators are of paramount importance for everyone in World Triathlon.

World Triathlon wants to extend their gratitude to the Spanish Triathlon Federation, the local organisers and the city of Valencia, that have been working tirelessly in the last months to adapt to the situation and to be able to provide athletes from all over the world with a world-class event.

After reviewing and analysing different bids, the Executive Board also approved to award the 2021 Paratriathlon World Championships to Milan, which was planned to host the same event in 2020 but had to cancel the plans due to the effects of the COVID pandemic.

The Executive Board of World Triathlon also approved that the 2020 Congress, planned to be staged in Paris in late November, will be held virtually, due to the increasing travel restrictions for many countries. All attendants able to vote in the elections for President, Vice-Presidents, Executive Board and Committee members electronically.

Canoe Slalom - Savšek defends his double European title, gold for Kudejova in women's kayak

The 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, concluded with semifinal, final and teams races in women’s kayak and men’s canoe events. Czech Katerina Kudejova and Benjamin Savšek from Slovenia were heroes of the day, winning two gold medals – both in individual and team events.

Slovenian canoeist Benjamin Savšek wrote history today defending two gold medals from last year’s European Championships in Pau. Firstly the 33-year-old from Ljubljana produced a superb final run in individual men’s canoe event. He was almost four seconds faster than anyone else. Lukaš Rohan and Vaclav Chaloupka picked up silver and bronze medal respectively for the host country.

For an excellent finish of the Championships Savšek also managed to defend the team European Champion title from last year. Like in the past season he joined forces with Luka Božič, who was fourth today in individual event, and Jure Lenarčič, who won the spot in the national team this year ahead of Anže Berčič, last year’s golden team member.

In the team events Ireland won historic silver medal in men’s canoe, where Poland picked up bronze medal.

Savšek was thrilled with his success, “I am really happy to keep the European Champion title from last year. It was an amazing run. I was feeling very good but it was really hard because the course was really hard. I just focused on my run and I did an amazing run. So I am really happy.”

Katerina Kudejova, one of many Czech hopes for the medal, was in the spotlight after women’s kayak final. She, like Savšek, won two gold medals on the last day of the 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships. She was 1.90 seconds faster than Camille Prigent from France and 2.72 second faster than another Czech Amelie Hilgertova, last year’s European Champion.

“It awesome. I thought a little bit about the medal, but European Champion – it’s awesome. I am happy. I was little nervous before, but it wasn’t bad. I paddled quite well, without problems. I only had problems before the first gate,” said Kudejova.

Kudejova, Veronika Vojtova and Antonie Galuškova were the fastest in women’s kayak team event. One second divided them and second placed team of France, while Austria finished third.

There is one more canoe slalom European Championships scheduled in two weeks – Krakow will host the 2020 ECA Junior and U23 Canoe Slalom European Championships between 1st and 4th October 2020.

The 2021 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships will be held in Ivrea, Italy.

Liveresults: https://siwidata.com/canoelive/-/live/eca/1374

 

LIVESTREAM SATURDAY/SUNDAY: https://www.facebook.com/ECAlivevideo

Livestreaming is available on special Facebook page but certain territories are geoblocked due to TV rights restrictions.

Canoe Slalom - Three gold medals for Czech Republic and one for France

The second competition day of the 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships in Prague was marked by great success of Czech paddlers who took advantage of their home course. With four available gold medals of the day, three went to Czech hands. Gabriela Satkova is the new European champion in women’s canoe, Jiri Prskavec took the gold in men’s kayak event. In team races Czech Republic took the top podium position in women’s canoe and France was the best in men’s kayak.

Jiri Prskavec was considered the main favourite for the European Champion title in Prague – Troja and he did not disappoint his fans. It was an exciting men’s kayak final but the knowledge of a home course was an advantage for Prskavec who was half a second faster than Peter Kauzer at the end. Kauzer, who is two times European Champion, won one of his titles two years ago in Prague and Prskavec was third on that occasion. Bronze medal went to the hands of another former European Champion Mateusz Polaczyk from Poland, who was the best kayaker of the old continent in 2017.

“It’s a special feeling. This is actually the first big race I won at home. Before the start I was talking to Peter and telling him, Peter you cannot win Europeans in Prague for the second time in a row, and he told me you have to try hard to beat me. When I finished and was first I saw Peter was waiting for me. It was funny moment. I couldn’t afford any more mistakes in my final run. I didn’t have a good flow in gates six to nine, I had big waves and I think I lost some time there. Then it was going well, but any more mistakes it would have cost me the win.”

It was a double win for host country in women’s canoe event. Gabriela Satkova produced the best final run to win her first Senior European Champion title, beating her teammate Tereza Fišerova for 0.30 seconds. French canoeist Lucie Prioux was third.

Satkova said, “It such a special and magical feeling. I have so many emotions it’s hard to describe it. It’s amazing. It was hard to wait in the finish, because I did not know what to expect. I knew I did big mistakes, so I did not know if it going to be enough or not. Fortunately other girls also did mistakes. The course was pretty hard for the European Championships, it challenges every athlete.”

In the afternoon team races in women’s canoe and men’s kayak were on the programme. Gabriela Satkova won her second gold medal of the day together with Tereza Fišerova and Tereza Kneblova in women’s C1 team event, Slovenia finished second and France third.

France celebrated gold medal in men’s kayak team event. They were a second and a half faster than Czech team, while Switzerland finished third.

On Sunday women’s kayak and men’s canoe semifinals, finals and team races are scheduled.

Liveresults: https://siwidata.com/canoelive/-/live/eca/1374

LIVESTREAM SATURDAY/SUNDAY: https://www.facebook.com/ECAlivevideo

Livestreaming will be available on special Facebook page but certain territories will be geoblocked due to TV rights restrictions.

For Saturday's and Sunday's races please check the programme of Czech TV (Česka Televize), RTV Slovenia, ORF Austria, RAI Italy, L'Equipe France, Match TV Russia.

https://www.canoe-europe.org/

The World Transplant Games Federation (WTGF) announced the return of the “Billion Steps Challenge”

The worldwide transplant community has been challenged to celebrate the gift of life and get active by collectively walking a billion steps

The World Transplant Games Federation (WTGF) announced today the return of its highly successful “Billion Steps Challenge” to encourage health and fitness amongst transplant recipients all over the world

The Fit for Life! Billion Steps Challenge, proudly supported by Novartis, is an online exercise program designed to help recipients and the extended community stay active and celebrate a life where physical activity and movement is the ‘new’ normal.

Several research studies have shown that some transplant recipients have a ‘fear of movement’ following transplantation, worried that they might overdo exercise and damage their transplanted organ. The first Billion Steps challenge held in 2017 saw participants increase their daily step count by an average of 50% throughout the challenge.

WTGF President, Chris Thomas said “We can demonstrate that, with planning, advice and common sense, transplant recipients can get back into exercise and sport. There really are no boundaries”.
 
For many, Covid-19 has created great amounts of stress, fear and anxiety. Regular exercise benefits both the body and mind. Exercise has the ability to improve mental health, reduce the risk of depression, cognitive decline and improve overall feelings of wellbeing.
 
“At times like this, focussing on ourselves, both physically and emotionally is crucial. Exercise is really the best way to beat the blues and maintain a positive outlook. We are pleased to be contributing to the welfare of recipients across the world at this difficult time”, said Chris Thomas.

We know the importance of an active community around recipients, which is why  this challenge is also open to the entire transplant community, including living donors, donor families, medical professionals, carers, family, and friends.

It begins on October 5th and will run formally for 10 weeks until December 13th 2020.

It is designed as a fun, community-centered interactive challenge where teams of between 2 and 5 people register online and sync their fitness trackers to record their daily steps.

The online Movespring platform also allows manual submission of steps for those who do not have a fitness tracker. Likewise all exercise types can be converted to steps. So if you prefer to go for a cycle, swim or perhaps participate in a fitness class, the easy conversion tools will allow you to convert these activities to steps.

The platform promotes healthy and fun competition between the teams, with various newsfeed and chat forums active, as well as regular messages of encouragement and updates on the leader board status. Weekly fun challenges will be set with WTGF branded hoodies up for grabs.

There is no age limit and no experience is needed. The challenge is designed to motivate all to exercise within their means, starting with some simple goals, such as walking around the block and building towards more ambitious goals.

The WTGF will be promoting ways to achieve your daily steps targets both at home and outside, taking into account different social interaction rules around the globe. The Billion Steps Challenge demonstrates to recipients that there is more to the WTGF than the highly successful Summer and Winter Games, and we plan to bring more events like this to you in the future.

To find out more about the Billion Steps Challenge or sign up to, please visit https://wtgf.org/billion-steps-challenge

Canoe Slalom - Czech team very strong at home course

The 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships in Prague kicked off with heats in all categories and with special safety requirements to protect all involved in the championships. Championships is also closed for general public. On the first competition day Czech team showed they will be very hard to beat on their course. Tereza Fišerova, Vit Prindiš and Lukaš Rohan all won in their respective categories, the only non-Czech heats winner of the day was Austrian Corinna Kuhnle who was the fastest in women’s kayak event.

Czech kayakers have four representatives on the startline thanks to ECA’s special rules which allow the start of European Champions in the last edition to defend their titles regardless of the outcome of their national selection races. This means Czech team has four candidates for medals both in men’s and women’s kayak event thanks to Vit Prindiš and Amelie Hilgertova who won gold medals last year in Pau.

 

Prindiš produced another great run on the Vltava River, finishing first in men’s kayak heats. The race was very tight; Martin Dougoud from Switzerland was only 0.09 second behind and Jiri Prskavec (CZE) was third, 0.16 second behind his teammate.

After the race the defending champion Prindiš said, “I am really happy I won today’s qualification, but that was not my goal. My goal was to be in the first 20 after the first run and to have a free afternoon. This gives me extra time tomorrow to see more course, more athletes how they will handle the course. And of course it gives me confidence. I did not have good selection races earlier in the summer, but I am growing in growing in confidence and I am feeling better on the water. This is perfect start to this Europeans.”

Tereza Fišerova (CZE) was the best in women’s canoe heats. She was more than six and a half seconds faster than Austrian Nadine Weratschnig in second place, while Tereza Kneblova (CZE) was third.

Lukaš Rohan (CZE) continued the tradition of excellent performances at home course. He was almost two seconds faster than second placed Liam Jegou from Ireland, while Luka Božič from Slovenia finished the heats in third place.

In women’s kayak qualifications former European and World Champion Corinna Kuhnle from Austria produced the best time. Viktoriia Us from Ukraine finished second and Katerina Kudejova from Czech Republic was third.

On Saturday we will follow semi-final and final runs in women’s canoe and men’s kayak and team events in previously mentioned categories.

RESULTS – HEATS

Women's canoe

1. Tereza Fišerova CZE 116.49

2. Nadine Weratschnig AUT +6.67

3. Tereza Kneblova CZE +7.42

 

Men's kayak

1. Vit Prindiš CZE 91.30

2. Martin Dougoud SUI +0.09

3. Jiri Prskavec CZE +0.16

 

Women's kayak

1. Corinna Kuhnle AUT 103.60

2. Viktoriia Us UKR +6.14

3. Katerina Kudejova CZE +6.97

 

Men's canoe

1. Lukaš Rohan CZE 99.90

2. Liam Jegou IRL +1.74

3. Luka Božič SLO +3.22

 

Liveresults: https://siwidata.com/canoelive/#/live/eca/1374

Livestream (Friday): https://www.youtube.com/canoeeurope

LIVESTREAM SATURDAY/SUNDAY: https://www.facebook.com/ECAlivevideo

Livestreaming will be available on special Facebook page but certain territories will be geoblocked due to TV rights restrictions.

For Saturday's and Sunday's races please check the programme of Czech TV (Česka Televize), RTV Slovenia, ORF Austria, RAI Italy, L'Equipe France, Match TV Russia .

European Canoe Association

Website: www.canoe-europe.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CanoeEurope/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canoe.europe/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CanoeEurope

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/CanoeEurope

Brazilian to finish WSL Championship Tour surf career with 2015 title

2015 WSL Championship Tour champion Adriano de Souza has decided to compete for just one more season at the elite surfing level in 2021 and say goodbye to the friends he has made.

Here is all you need to know:

- De Souza was born in Guarujá, Brazil, and started surfing at the age of eight. By the time he reached his 18th birthday, he was already considered one of the best surfers in the world as he travelled the globe competing on the prestigious Championship Tour.

- He has been a trailblazer for Brazil ever since with the genial star winning the World Junior title in 2003 and becoming World Qualifying Series champion in 2005.

- After picking up four WSL Championship Tour victories between 2009 and 2013, he finally got his hands on the sport's most prized trophy with a title victory in 2015 thanks, in part, to two victories in the Billabong Pipe Masters and Margaret River Pro events.

- De Souza, who also won the 2017 Oi Rio Pro stop, wants to bow out on his own terms after more than 15 years of breathtaking surfing that has inspired millions.

- The 33-year-old revealed: "In the past 15 years I gave my life to surfing, with high dedication, and I lived the surfing in a 1000% way. Competing without passion is not a champion attitude, and it doesn't match with the energy of the sport. I want to celebrate these past 15 years – during this time I built relationships around the whole world, with beloved ones, and developed a strong connection with family, friends and fans – I want to spread a message of a new light on my path. With a competition jersey, I was always focused on great results, because I'm a World Champion but I wanted to do some things I've always imagined, like being part of a special event without so much pressure or go on a surf trip with friends."

- Fellow Brazilians Gabriel Medina (2014, 2018) and Italo Ferreira (2019) have also won the world title while - along with legend Carlos Burle - he has helped inspire talented compatriots such as Lucas Chianca, Lucas Fink, Mateus Herdy, Nicole Pacelli and Pedro Vianna.

- De Souza, whose trademark move is boosting airs, added: "My goal is to complete the whole CT in 2021, because I have so many friends and I don't want to say a 'half-goodbye'. My expectations are high right now, especially for Saquarema, where I believe it will be so intense. This 'goodbye' vibe will give me a good energy."

Photo  Red Bull Content Pool

Canoe Slalom - The wait is over 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships in Prague starts

LIVESTREAMING of the 2020 ECA Canoe Slalom European Championships on Canoe Europe Youtube channel will be available only on Friday (18/09/2020).

Due to TV rights restrictions we are not allowed to stream Saturday's and Sunday's races on our channel. Those races will be available on demand on Canoe Europe Youtube channel next week. Thank you for understanding.

FRIDAY: https://www.youtube.com/canoeeurope

For Saturday's and Sunday's races please check the programme of Czech TV (Česka Televize), RTV Slovenia, ORF Austria, RTVE Spain, RAI Italy, L'Equipe France .

LIVERESULTS: https://siwidata.com/canoelive/ - /splash/eca/1374v

For all info/photos visit:

Canoe Slalom Prague Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CanoeSlalomPrague/

Canoe Europe Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CanoeEurope/

Česky vodny slalom a sjezd Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CzechCanoe/

European Canoe Association

Website: www.canoe-europe.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CanoeEurope/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canoe.europe/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CanoeEurope

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/CanoeEurope