Michel Uhl | Sport

I am Michel and I am a Canoe Slalom athlete. I am passionate about kayaking. I first got in a kayak when I was three and started getting more serious about it when I was around 12 years old. Since 2016, I have been competing in Canoe Slalom, and Extreme Whitewater Kayaking. Over the last year I have been ranked as number two NZ Canoe Slalom athlete under 18 years of age. I have also been ranked as number one Extreme Whitewater Kayaker under 18 years of age for the last three years. This year I have been selected into the Canoe slalom U18 New Zealand team. While I have not been able to travel to the Junior Worlds in Europe I have had the opportunity to train alongside awesome athletes including Olympic athletes Lukka Jones and Callum Gilbert.

Kayaking has given me the opportunity to travel and meet people all over New Zealand and the world. I have the Kaituna River in my backyard that attracts national and international kayakers. This would have to be my favourite river but the adventures on remote and flooded rivers are also some of my favorites. The Kokatahi river on the West Coast of the South Island would be one of these. It is a 10 minute helicopter ride into a remote valley and a day of class 4 and 5 paddling. Before the outbreak of COVID 19, I had also been fortunate to visit and paddle rivers in Canada, Germany and Austria.

My goal now is to qualify for the New Zealand Under 23 Canoe Slalom Team for 2022, keep paddling rivers and making the most of all the opportunities that are offered to me.