ICF Canoe Polo Committee activities Q1 2025

Referee progress 

The ICF Canoe Polo Committe met online in January with an agenda that included reviews of the 2024 ICF Super Cup and 2024 ICF Canoe Polo World Championships as well as updates on The World Games 2025, this year’s Continental Championships, rules, innovation, refereeing, coaching, sponsorship and the Medical Committee’s head injuries paper. Following all the incredible work done by Duncan Cochrane of Australia over the years for refereeing, having two top active referees join the group as a Committee member and advisor has seen a notable acceleration in referee progress again. As per the current ICF Canoe Polo rules, the referee activity analysis register is now revised and online. All qualified ICF referees are required to submit their activity. This activity form must be submitted once by October 30, 2025, and enables the activity of all to be seen and more focused support ultimately being given in the future. Each continent will not be measured against each other as the activity opportunities are very different in each. 

Shaping the future 

February was an exceptionally busy month with the second-ever online Canoe Polo seminar being held. Participants were invited from all senior teams at the last World Championships with the seminar entitled “Shaping the Future of Canoe Polo: Rules Briefing and Innovation Discussion”. Thirty-four persons from 18 countries participated with topics discussed at length including the two-phase shot clock (for implementation in 2027); hand resin; goal height; ball size; card system; Games abandoned consequences; sprint start; smaller boats and paddles for women; clock stoppage; referees for semi-finals and finals; video assistance referee; mixed teams; rental kayaks; World Championships structure; referee quality; Canoe Polo in multi-sport events; Canoe Polo as an Olympic Sport?; promotion beyond Europe and rule book revision. The constructive discussions, with many varied viewpoints, have laid the ground for the ICF Canoe Polo Committee to really work through before the next rules revisions in 2026 for implementation in January 2027. 

Paddle Summit 

Only a couple of weeks later almost all of the ICF Canoe Polo Committee were able to meet in China for the ICF Paddle Summit as well as the ICF Sports Commission meeting and ICF Board of Directors meeting. The commitment of all, who all work on a voluntary basis, is notable. The agenda for the ICF Canoe Polo Committee meeting in China included the recent seminar and ICF/HOC commentators at the World Championships, referees, officials, coaching, The World Games 2025, HOC feedback from the 2024 World Championships, meeting with Yupin Sports, future Asian Games, Continental Championships in 2025, next year’s World Championships and more.

Sponsorship renewal

The ICF and Yupin Sports renewed the Canoe Polo ball sponsorship for all World Championships and Continental Championships until the end of 2028. The full story can be found here.
March ended with ICF Canoe Polo Chair Greg Smale being elected as a Board Member of the European Canoe Association. 

“These first three months of 2025 have flown by with a lot happening,” he said. 
“The ICF Canoe Polo Committee is looking forward with great enthusiasm to the forthcoming Chengdu 2025 World Games in August. All members are currently working hard in their respective areas of responsibility and I thank them once again for all their voluntary time towards the development of Canoe Polo.”

Updates on The World Games 2025 can be found here.

By Greg Smale, Chair of the ICF Canoe Polo Committee