All you need to know about kayaking

Written by: Arthur, founder of ISFM and Lucas W, reporter in ISFM

In this article, we’ll be talking about the many different beauties of this challenging but fun sport. 

Introduction

Kayaking is a water sport, where you use double-sided paddles to maneuver a narrow but long boat. You can go across rivers, or bays, or any other body of water; as long as it’s not the ocean, or that there’s too many waves where you plan on going.

History

Many people believe that kayaking was invented, or first used in Greenland by the *Inuit. “Kayak”, means “man-boat” in Eskimo. 

It was used for hunting and transportation across water. You can fit a maximum of four people in a kayak! In 1936, kayaking was added to the olympics. 

Kayaking is very popular in:

• Haida Gwaii, Canada
• Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica
• Kenai Fjords, Alaska, United States
• Galapagos National Park, Ecuador
• Disko Bay, Greenland
• Corsica, France
• West Coast, Scotland
• And, all of Cuba

All we know, still today, is that the northern american Inuit tribes invented the first rough version of a kayak. It was most likely the Aleut tribe around 4000 years ago. 

Types

There are many diverse versions of kayaks, but i’m just going to explain the main ones:

• Recreational Kayaks; these kayaks are made for calm water like rivers, or lakes.
• Sea Kayaks; corresponding to the name, sea kayaks are made to support marine environments.
• Clear kayaks; these kayaks are see-through on purpose, so you can see everything under you.
• Sit-in Kayaks; this version is very useful if you don’t want to get wet. You are seated inside a cockpit where your legs, and  food, or non-waterproof items can be stored so they don’t get damaged by water.
• Sit-on kayaks; these are similar to recreational kayaks, because you don’t store your legs in a cockpit, but you sit on top of the kayak.

Tournaments     

In kayaking, there aren’t many tournaments, but there is one important one I know. It’s called the International Canoe Federation , or ICF, and this group hosts canoeing and kayaking tournaments. They host slaloms. Actually, canoeing and kayaking are pretty much the same thing. The previous ICF slalom was during the 2024 olympics in Vaire-sur-marne, Paris, France,  The next one will be in 2028 at OKC Riversport, Oklahoma City, United states. The winner of 2024’s slalom was the Italian Giovanni de Gennaro, and he won by scoring a 88.22 second race. Kayaking was added to the olympics in 1936 and presented in Berlin for the first time. 

Conclusion

Kayaking is a demanding sport, but it makes you feel good. It is very relaxing, too. I have done kayaking before, and I would recommend it to people who like rowing, chilling, and spending time with other people.This sport can be an individual sport, or a team sport, which is great because you can choose which one. In the Olympics, you could race as an individual, pair, or a team of four.

Thank you for reading this “All you need to know about kayaking” article. 

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Thank you for reading! Written by: Arthur, founder of ISFM, and Lucas W, reporter in ISFM