Paracanoe is the canoeing discipline for athletes with an impairment and races are contested by two types of boat, kayak (K) and va’a (V). The kayak is propelled by a double-blade paddle, while the va’a is a rudderless, outrigger canoe which has an ama (second pontoon) as a support float and is used with a single-blade paddle. Both kayak and va’a have three different classes of events for men and women, depending on the classification of an athlete’s impairment, with KL1, KL2 and KL3 for kayak and VL1, VL2 and VL3 for va’a. At international level all paracanoe races are individual events and competed at a distance of 200m.
Olympic & Paralympic
Paracanoe
Paracanoe with the San Diego Canoe & Kayak Team
- 2021 and 2020 Events
- Paralympic Events
- ACA Athlete Selection Procedures, 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, Amended on 06/08/2021
- ACA Athlete Selection Procedures, 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, Approval Letter
- ACA Games Staff Selection Procedures Tokyo Paralympics 2020, Amended on 12/16/2020
- August 20-24, 2021
- Registration is now open until August 9
- COVID-19 Mitigation Plan
- Men’s Kayak Single (MKL1)
- Men’s Kayak Single (MKL2)
- Men’s Kayak Single (MKL3)
- Men’s Va’a Single (MVL2)
- Men’s Va’a Single (MVL3)
- Women’s Kayak Single (WKL1)
- Women’s Kayak Single (WKL2)
- Women’s Kayak Single (WKL3)
- Women’s Va’a Single (WVL2)
Paracanoe National Team Trials
As per the ACA Athlete Selection Procedures, 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, Amended on 12/16/2020, section 1.2.2., ACA has canceled the ACA Paracanoe Paralympic and World Cup 1 Trials (in 2021) at Nathan Benderson Park, Sarasota, Florida, March 19-21, 2021, because fewer than three athletes registered for the Trials in all applicable events.
Paralympic Qualifier
TOKYO 2020 PARALYMPIC GAMES – Paracanoe, September 2-4, 2021
2021 Sprint/Para Nationals- Oklahoma City, OK
The following paracanoe sprint events are part of the 2020 Tokyo and 2024 Paris Olympic program:
2021 US National and Paracanoe Team
Blake Haxton: MVL2
- Hometown: Columbus, Ohio
- 31 years old
- 2-time Paralympian (2016, 2020)
- Steven is also a member of the U.S. Paralympic Rowing Team; he will race in rowing and paracanoe at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games
Kaitlyn Verfuerth: WKL2, WKVL2
- Hometown: Gilbert, Arizona
- 36 years old
- Secured a ticket to Tokyo based on her results in VL1 women 200m at the 2019 ICF world championships
- Member of the 2004, 2008, and 2016 Paralympic tennis teams