Johnson, Hornsby Headline Sprint Nationals

Paddlers Begin 2-year Quest for Olympic Qualification in OKC

Oklahoma City, Okla.– About 400 athletes are expected to descend upon the Sooner State for USA Canoe/Kayak Sprint National Championships, Aug. 26-29. The event marks the beginning of the long journey towards qualification for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Some of the senior races will qualify athletes for the 2010 Pan American Championships, which is a qualifier for the 2011 Pan American Games, a second chance qualifier for London 2012.

The Oklahoma River and Chesapeake Boathouse play host to races in K1, K2, K4, C1, C2, C4 for athletes in all age categories. Masters events will take place on Sunday. The deadline for competitors to register is Thursday, Aug. 5.

“[Nationals] is the number one sprint event in the country for our clubs and it allows our junior athletes to see the top seniors and the top seniors to then prepare themselves for the PanAm Championships,” said Shaun Caven, Director of Kayaking at OKC Boathouse and USA Canoe/Kayak National Team Coach.

The vast majority of the U.S. team participating in the 2010 Sprint World Championships, Aug. 19-22, will compete in Oklahoma. Two-time Olympian Carrie Johnson (San Diego, Calif.), Maggie Hogan (San Diego, Calif.), Ariel Farrar-Wellman, and 21-year-old Emily Vinson (Gainesville, Ga.) will be tough to top in the women’s kayak events. Tim Hornsby (Atlanta, Ga.), Morgan House (Gainesville, Ga.) and brothers Patrick and Ryan Dolan (Kailua, Hawaii) lead the way on the men’s side. Canoe athletes Pam Boteler, Anna Crawford and Itzel Reza Flores will also compete at both National and World Championships.

This will be the second time Oklahoma City has hosted the event and first time since 2008. The world-class course will only improve with the opening of the $10 million Devon Boathouse in October.

Live video and up-to-date results can be found at http://oklahomariverevents.org/usack-nationals/live-video.

USA Canoe/Kayak is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee and the International Canoe Federation. It governs the Olympic disciplines of Flatwater Sprint and Whitewater Slalom and sanctions Freestyle, Marathon, Outrigger, Wildwater, Kayak Polo, Dragon Boat and Canoe Sailing in the United States. For more information about USA Canoe/Kayak, please visit us on the web at www.usack.org.