Welcome to another Paddle UK feature in this awesome Summer issue of Paddler Magazine .
We hope you ’ ve enjoyed exploring your local waterways , which , thanks to the Big Paddle Cleanup , look much cleaner !
In this feature , you ’ ll find information on how to watch our British paddlesport athletes heading out to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games and plenty of # PaddleSafe advice , including our five top tips for paddling safely and courses to help you level up your paddling . You can also check out some of the latest news from Paddle UK below . Be sure to head over to our website https :// paddleuk . org . uk , to keep up to date .
Recruitment is open for a new Paddle UK Chair
Applications are now open for the position of Paddle UK Chair as Professor John Coyne CBE nears the end of his second term of office .
People are at the heart of Paddle UK , an organisation with a vision to inspire people to pursue a passion for paddling for health , enjoyment , friendship , challenge and achievement .
We are now looking to identify an individual capable of leading the organisation through the next exciting phase of its history . Info : https :// paddleuk . org . uk / recruitment-opens-fornew-paddle-uk-chair .
New Government … What next for water quality and access ?
Check out our latest article on water quality and access on the Paddle UK website . Ben Seal , Head of Access and Environment at Paddle UK , talks about what might lie ahead for paddlers in the next five years following the General Election .
He says , “ We now have hundreds of new , energised MPs to meet and enthuse about blue spaces . After six years of campaigning on Clear Access , Clear Waters , finding politicians who would actively champion our cause became an uphill battle . If a paddling community wants change – cleaner rivers and greater access – we must get on the front foot now .” Info : https :// paddleuk . org . uk / new-government-whatnext-for-water-quality-and-access .
Record number of volunteers take part in Big Paddle Cleanup 2024
It has been another brilliant year for the Big Paddle Cleanup , with a record number of people taking part ! The Big Paddle Cleanup , which ran from 25 May to 9 June , engaged an incredible 3,699 volunteers .
Paddlers filled 1,888 sacks with rubbish and removed much larger items , such as crash barriers , fridges , chairs , shopping trolleys , toilets , and fire extinguishers , from the water .
Within those sacks , 7,809 plastic bottles , 2,374 glass bottles , 4,735 cans , 10,613 plastic food wrappers , and a whole host of unusual items were recorded as being removed from waterways . Info : https :// paddleuk . org . uk / big-paddle-clean-uprecord-volunteer-numbers .
Kayaker makes London Locks world record attempt
Olympians Sebastian Cuattrin and Sebastian Szubski have provisionally smashed the world record for paddling the 198.5-kilometre stretch of the River Thames from Lechlade , Gloucestershire , to London .
The pair covered the route from St John ’ s Lock to Teddington Lock in 21 hours and 57 minutes , provisionally beating the previous record by more than two hours . They paddled through 22 locks and ran and carried for the other 22 . Info : https :// paddleuk . org . uk / kayakers-make-londonlocks-world-record-attempt . paddleuk . org . uk 51