Logan Ferguson | Sport

I got introduced to Canoe Sprint at the age of 12. From then on, I have competed for the Karapiro Kayaking Racing Club, located in Cambridge.

In 2021 I won the under 16 K1 500m and 2nd in the u16 K1 200m at the Canoe Sprint Nationals. I was then selected for the under 16 Asia Pacific Team and the NZ Paddle ID programme. Unfortunately, due to Covid, we could not travel to the Asia Pacific regatta.

This year was a step up to the under 18 division. I had a rough start to the year tearing the meniscus in my knee. This was an ongoing issue that led to surgery 6 weeks before the Nationals. This left me with a lot of time out of the boat and only able to do upper body gym sessions.

I was nervous lining up for my first race at the 2022 Nationals regatta, K1 1000m knowing that I wasn’t at my best. With 300m to go I was in 5th place with my competitors close I managed to pull through and get the bronze medal. My next race was the K1 200m, feeling more confident after the 1000m race and knowing I had the strength from my gym workouts I was feeling good. At the start the 200m was a close race with 50m to go, all my strength training had kicked in putting me in front for the gold medal.

After Nationals I was named in the under 18 NZ Asia Pacific Team, competing in Japan in September.

My training consists of around 10 sessions per week, 7 on the water and 3 in the gym. After my injury, I am more determined and eager to be successful.