Age:

13–16; U19

Age Description:

Athletes must be born between 2010 and 2013. PaddleAll athletes must be born between 2007 and 2013.

Zone Team Composition:

8 athletes (no more than 6 of one gender) per zone.

Wildcards:

24 wildcard spaces (no more than 13 of one gender). 16 additional wildcard spaces for PaddleAll athletes with no gender restrictions.

Maximum Athletes:

104

Coaches:

(See BC Games General Rules for information about the “adult supervisor” role)

One (1) head coach and one (1) assistant coach per zone. Where the zone team includes both male and female athletes, the coaches must be of the opposite gender, otherwise at least one must be the same gender as the athletes. For large zone teams, a second assistant coach may be approved by the Provincial Advisor.

One (1) head coach for all PaddleAll athletes. One (1) assistant coach per zone fielding one or more PaddleAll athletes may be approved by the Provincial Advisor.

An adult supervisor is required if there is no assistant coach for the zone.

Every zone must name a head coach and at least one assistant coach (exception: sports for athletes with a disability, which must have one head coach and at least one assistant coach for the sport).  If additional adults are named for the zone (or sport) and they meet the certification requirements of assistant coaches, they should be registered with the role “assistant coach”, otherwise they are registered with the role “adult supervisor”.  See BC Games General Rules for more information.

Officials:

The number of Officials the sport is permitted to register as participants)

25. All officials must be members of CanoeKayak BC (CKBC) and registered in the CKBC RAMP membership system.

Transportation, accommodation, and meals, as arranged by the Host Society, will be provided for officials. See BC Games General Rules for more information.

Athlete Eligibility:

In addition to BC Games General Rules, the sport-specific eligibility requirements noted in this technical package are in effect for the 2026 BC Winter Games.

All participants must be members of CanoeKayak BC (CKBC) and registered in the RAMP membership system.

Athletes who have competed in paddling for two (2) or less years, will be considered a Learn to Train (LtoT) athlete.

Athletes who have competed in their respective class for two (2) or more years will be considered in the Train to Train (TtoT) category for that class.

Athletes may attend a second BC Summer Games only if they competed in the Learn to Train singles events at their first Games AND they will compete in the Train to Train singles events at the 2026 BC Summer Games.

Athletes may not attend more than two BC Games to compete in Canoe/Kayak.

Athletes who have competed in a Canada Summer Games in Canoe/Kayak are ineligible to compete at a subsequent BC Summer Games.

Athletes who have qualified for a single boat final at the previous year's CKC national championships are ineligible to compete at a subsequent BC Summer Games.

Coaching Eligibility:

Note that the role of head coaches and assistant coaches at the BC Games includes travelling to and from the Games with the team/zone, residing with the team/zone in BC Games accommodation, and acting in a supervisory capacity throughout the Games. 
See BC Games General Rules for information about the roles of the head coach and assistant coach.

All head coaches must be ELCC Certified (Entry Level Competitive Coach certified). Assistant coaches must be ELCC Trained (Entry Level Competitive Coach trained). and must have completed Make Ethical Decisions. Adult supervisors are required to have completed Safe Sport Training.

All coaches must have completed SafeSport training, background checks, and NCCP ’s Making Ethical Decisions before the Games.

All coaches must be members of CanoeKayak BC (CKBC) and registered in the CKBC RAMP membership system. CKBC will check these requirements before approving Coaches for the Games.

BC Games General Rules dictate the level of coach certification required for head coaches and assistant coaches unless otherwise stated in this Technical Package – click here for details.  A minimum of Safe Sport Training is required for all adult supervisors – more information can be found here.

Events Categories:

Disciplines:
Canoe Kayak events fall into 4 disciplines with various boat types and crew sizes:

SPRINT

• Kayak (single K-1, dual K-2)
• Canoe (single C-1, dual C-2 and quad C-4)
• Indigenous Canoe (IC-1)

STAND UP PADDLE BOARD (SUP)

• Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP-1)

FLATWATER SLALOM

• Slalom (single K-1, single C-1)

KAYAK POLO

• Polo (teams of 6 boats, KP-1)

Events:

SPRINT KAYAK
K-1 (Male / Female)

• 200m PaddleAll Open (Multi-Gender)
• 500m Learn to Train
• 500m Train to Train
• 1000m Learn to Train
• 2000m Train to Train

K-2 (Male / Female)

• 500m Learn to Train
• 500m Train to Train
• 1000m Mixed Development (Multi-Gender)

SPRINT CANOE / INDIGENOUS CANOE
C-1, IC-1 (Male / Female)

• 200m PaddleAll Open (Multi-Gender)
• 500m Learn to Train
• 1000m Learn to Train

C-2 (Male / Female)

• 500m Learn to Train
• 500m Train to Train
• 1000m Mixed Development (Multi-Gender)

C-4 (Multi-Gender)

• 1000m Mixed Open (Multi-Gender)

STAND UP PADDLE BOARD
SUP-1 (Male / Female)

• 100m Sprint Learn to Train
• 100m Sprint Train to Train
• Obstacle Sprint Learn to Train
• Obstacle Sprint Train to Train

FLATWATER SLALOM
K-1 (Male / Female)

• Learn to Train
• Train to Train

C-1 (Male / Female)

• Learn to Train
• Train to Train

The slalom course will be on flat water and consist of 10 to 14 gates aiming for 90 seconds to complete the course in individual timed runs.

KAYAK POLO
The polo tournament will consist of multi gender teams of six (6) paddlers, four (4) on the pitch at a time, the rest are spares. Each zone is encouraged to field a complete team. To facilitate the tournament, non-zone aligned teams will be assembled to ensure there are eight (8) teams in competition.

Event Requirements:
Every athlete must participate in a minimum of three (3) categories from four (4) - Sprint, Stand up Paddle board, Flatwater Slalom, Kayak Polo. Every athlete must participate in a minimum of three (3) events and a maximum of eight (8) events.

Athletes may enter LtoT in one type of boat and TtoT in another type.

Entries in the LtoT canoe category may use a high kneel position.

The Competition Committees reserves the right to move LtoT athletes to TtoT when obviously outclassing their category.

Open events have no requirements regarding the athlete's developmental stage; they can be entered by any athlete.

The Mixed Development categories require an even number of LtoT and TtoT athletes per boat.

Multi Gender events means the team has at least one of each gender in the crew.

PaddleAll competitors are encouraged to be part of any crew events.

Team members cannot be replaced between heats and finals without Competition Committee’s approval before the event.

Kayak Polo teams can substitute players at any time, both during the match and between the matches from their 6 players designated on the team roster.

Competition Committees reserve the right to combine events where the entries are less than three (3) boats.

Competition Committee:
Each discipline will have a set competition committee consisting of:

• the CKBC Technical Director,
• the Head Official for the discipline, and
• the Provincial Advisor

Equipment:

Zones are responsible for providing and using their own sprint paddling equipment.

All non-sprint equipment will be provided - boats (Surfskis and Clipper canoes, Slalom and Kayak polo boats), PFDs, paddles, knee blocks, helmets, etc.

Athletes may use their own polo helmets.

TtoT athletes may use their own equipment.

All equipment must comply with the respective safety rules of the discipline as determined by the Competition Committees.

Zones are responsible for transporting their own sprint paddling equipment or TtoT athletes’ private equipment.

Paddle All equipment will follow similar arrangements with the involvement of the PaddleAll athlete and Coaches.

Approved Boats:

Canoe Equipment:
All LtoT races for sprint canoe will be in a recreational canoe (Clipper brand or similar, but not racing designs from the manufacturer). C2 Mixed Development race and C4 Mixed Open race will be raced in recreational canoe, same as all LtoT. CKBC will arrange for these boats to be present.

All TtoT races will be raced in sprint boats.

Kayak Equipment:
K1:
All LtoT SHORT DISTANCE races for SINGLE sprint kayak races will be in Surf Ski kayak - 56 cm beam or wider (Think Ace, Think Jet or equivalent) or development kayaks APPROVED by CKBC Technical Director.

All LtoT and TtoT LONG DISTANCE races (1000m and 2000m) will be in Surf Ski kayak - 56 cm beam or wider (Think Ace, ThinkJet or equivalent). CKBC will arrange for these boats to be present.

K2:
For sprint K2, all LtoT boats must be a beginner style boat. The list of acceptable boats is as follows:

• Hody – Dolphin K2, Marlin K2
• Nelo – Viper K2
• Plastex – Para
• Simon River – Sagitta, Aquila, or Arrow4All
• Elio – Cobra K2

All TtoT races will be raced in sprint boats.

Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP) Equipment:
SUPs and paddles will be arranged by CKBC. TtoT SUP athletes are encouraged to use their own equipment.

LtoT sprint: restricted to CKBC provided boards

TtoT sprint: no restrictions

LtoT and TtoT Technical race: restricted to CKBC provided boards

Flatwater Slalom & Polo Equipment:
No restrictions on boat models or material (plastic/composite) as long as the boat is designed for the respective sub-discipline.

If there are any questions about suitable boats, the CKBC Technical Director must be consulted no later than the athlete registration deadline. Their decision is final.

Zone Selections and Registration Deadline:

Please refer to the BC Games General Rules for the registration deadline set by the BC Games Society. The BC Games deadline is in effect unless an earlier date is set by the Provincial Sport Organization is specified in this technical package.  See BC Games General Rules for registration procedures.

CKBC states that all zones must complete zone qualification events by June 7, 2026 and provide the results to CKBC Sport Development Manager by June 8, 2026.

Canoe Kayak BC will provide Zones with Provincial Selection Guidelines. Zone selection criteria will be at the discretion of each Zone Coaches and Zone Representative, and must be submitted to CKBC Technical Director for approval prior to their selection trials event, by April 12, 2026 at the latest.

Wildcards will be allocated by a committee composed of the Provincial Advisor and CKBC Technical Director based on circulated criteria from the list of all alternatives registered by June 15, 2026.

Accommodation and Transportation:

Also see BC Games General Rules for further details about accommodation and transportation.

Accommodation Requirements:
All athletes, coaches, and adult supervisors participating in the BC Games are required to stay in designated BC Games accommodation. This ensures a consistent Games experience for all participants, including access to meals, transportation, and supervision.

Officials are not required to stay in BC Games accommodation, unless they are under the age of 19 as of the first day of the Games. Officials should contact their Provincial Sport Organization (PSO) for further information on accommodation arrangements.

Exemptions for athletes or coaches to stay outside of BC Games accommodation may be granted for legitimate medical reasons. However, these exemptions are regulated and must be approved in advance to ensure the integrity of the accommodation model. Contact your Provincial Advisor for further information.

Transportation Requirements:
All athletes, coaches, and adult supervisors, except for those residing within close proximity to the host community, are expected to use BC Games transportation services from their designated pick-up point, which may include bus or air travel. This transportation is provided at no additional cost to participants. Participants residing within close proximity to the host community are responsible for their own travel to the Games, a process known as Immediate Vicinity Travel.

Participants may request to opt out of BC Games transportation (a process known as Own Travel) with approval from the Provincial Advisor. However, sport-specific travel requirements may override this option. Participants traveling under either Immediate Vicinity Travel or Own Travel do so at their own expense and liability. The full athlete fee still applies regardless of the travel method chosen.

All participants on BC Games transportation services must adhere to the BC Games Society’s Team Travel Policy which requires them to travel at their own expense and liability to a designated zone pick-up point and be under the supervision of a coach or adult supervisor from their sport.

Medals:

Medals will be awarded within the parameters of the BC Games Society Medals Rule.

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Fees:

See the BC Games General Rules for current BC Games registration fees.  Note that fees are assessed for athletes only (coaches, adult supervisors, and officials do not pay this fee).  Sports may assess additional fees to cover training, uniforms, qualification event(s), etc.  Please contact your Provincial Advisor or the PSO for more details. Fees are collected by the sport and paid to the BC Games Society upon invoice after the Games.

The BC Games athlete fee for the 2026 BC Summer Games is $175.00 and helps offset some Games operating expenses such as participant transportation, accommodation, and food services. CanoeKayak BC charges athletes a supplementary fee of $275.00 which is used to offset CKBC fleet transportation expenses, officials, and competition uniforms and apparel. The total athlete fee to compete in Canoe/Kayak at the 2026 BC Summer Games is $450.00 and is collected by CanoeKayak BC.

Additional fees may be charged by individual zone teams to support pre-Games training opportunities and/or zone apparel kits, at the discretion of the Zone Rep or head coach.