Gathering in Rotterdam was a group of 28 coaches from 10 canoe clubs all with a passion for developing the sport in The Netherlands.
That workshop at the start of this month focused on strength training to help coaches transition sprint and marathon paddlers from the winter to competition season.
It was run by Zdzislaw Szubski, a former Polish sprint star who represented his country at the Moscow 1980 Olympic Games and won numerous medals on the world stage.
“I believe my cooperation with all the coaches and clubs is excellent,” said Szubski.
“I systematically try to implement my training system, and we plan to meet every 30 to 40 days for seminars with coaches and athletes.”
Szubski is a vastly experienced coach having worked for many nations over the years including Brazil, Chile, Greece, and Portugal.
Since October 2023, Szubski has been working as head coach of the Canoe Sprint team at Watersportverbond – the national governing body for water sports in The Netherlands.
“The beginning of my work was aimed at implementing my training system,” said Szubski.
“Dutch athletes are very intelligent, and I had no problems implementing my work system.
“From the very beginning, I paid attention to the performance and not the amount of work done.”
After just six months of work, Szubski delivered results.
At the European Olympic qualifier in Szeged, Hungary, Selma Konijn and Ruth Vorsselman sealed their ticket to Paris 2024 with victory in the women’s kayak double 500m.
It was the first time The Netherlands had earned a women’s Canoe Sprint Olympic quota for more than 30 years.
Szubski then headed to the French capital where Konijn and Vorsselman finished eight after reaching the Olympic final.
“It was and is a great success for us,” said Szubski.
Tonny Benschop, Chair of the Canoe Sprint and Canoe Marathon Committee at Watersportverbond, has hailed the impact of Szubski and is looking forward to the future with the team under the tutelage of the Polish trainer.
“Zdzislaw started with a clear focus on the Olympic Games,” said Benschop.
“That was his objective last year and now we have an agreement for the coming four years.
“In the next two years, especially this year, we are looking to widen his expertise to assist clubs to facilitate better training for the athletes.
“We finally had some success at the Olympics, and we want to continue that.
“We want to promote the youth to make it to that top level but how do you do this effectively?
“Having an alignment between coaches and trainers at clubs is essential to this.
“We want to have a common understanding of how to train because it makes no sense for the club trainers to say something different to the regional trainer or head coach.
“The aim is to align the trainers and coaches.”
Szubski is currently with his Dutch paddlers at the Vila Nova de Milfontes in Portugal for a three-week training programme.
Olympic teams from Poland, Lithuania and Germany are also training alongside The Netherlands.
In Olympic history, three silvers and five bronzes have been won by The Netherlands in canoeing, but a gold still eludes them.
“My cooperation with the rest of the team is going very well and we are doing everything to qualify a larger number of athletes to LA in 2028 and fight for the gold medal,” added Szubski.
“We have a very good chance of that.
“I would like to be in the six best teams in the world.”
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