Canoe and Rafting Federations of Brazil sign a historical MoU. Interview with Rebeca Fernandes, Vice-President of the Brazilian Rafting Association.

- Rebeca, a new sport era began in Brazil, what do you think are the benefits about being with WRF?

- I think that the membership of our Federation with WFR helps us in the battle we face every day behind the Olympic dream.

I really believe that in the worldwide Rafting there was a lack of organization about the agonistic interests: now WRF represents an istitution that is making the sport grow, reorganizing every aspect of it, working for new big goals.

Competitors and teams train daily and, as we all know, they seek recognition of their training and effort in international competitions. Becoming an Olympic Sport will certainly represent the opportunity of a reward for every athlete's sacrifice, a dream for every paddle lover.

- Brazil signed a MoU between Rafting and Canoe federations: what are the consequences of being under ICF for your Federation and for your athletes?

- The Brazilian rafting association has now signed a collaborative agreement with CBCA (Brazilian Canoeing Confederation) that has been active in the last 16 years.

The consequences (that are only benefits) of being active within the Brazilian Canoeing Confederation is precisely the endorsement and credibility that rafting will reach during the national competitions, bringing more visibility to the sport and making us more publicized through TV and web media.

- What is your opinion about the Olympic project and about the Para-Rafting?

- We are very happy about the WRF Olympic project and we are starting to collaborate in order to reach our common goal as soon as possible.

Our athletes reached the podium in many international competitions in the last years and now they are looking forward to see their professional strenght and technique recognized in an Olympic way. We are ready to do the necessary to realize their dream.

Currently we have Brazilian athletes with physical limitation who, regardless, are able to compete so they fit in the official category. In the past these competitors received a limited accessibility to the sport because of the lacking organization, but now the WRF Para-Rafting category will give them support and the right opportunity to compete in official competitions.

- What changes do you expect about the Rafting world in a few month and as a long terms project?

- The Brazilian rafting competitors expect efficient changes, from this new project, in the worldwide organization of the sport, especially an increasing support to the beginning countries that need agonistic and commercial help.

Brazil is always in search of the best ways to realize the Sport's dream that is the recognition as an Olympic Game, in whatever category.

The President of the Confederation of Canoeing, Mr. João Tomasini, has proposed to add R4 Rafting to the Pan American Masters category of 2020 and we are looking forward to this participation and working to develop this project.

Brazil seeks this recognition and we are ready to develop any project in the field of competitive Rafting!

During the ICF Congress 2018 in Budapest Mr. Danilo Barmaz, President of the WRF, and Mr. Jean Zoungrana, President of the Fédération Francaise de Canoe Kayak signed the the Memorandum of Understanding: WRF and
FFCK will cooperate through a common line towards programs and activities with the aim of enlarging the number of people practicing the paddle
sport, cooperating on the Training Programme for Raft Guide & Coaches.

The parties, in fact, recognize the concept of sustainability as a key for the future of the paddle sport.

Many whitewater rivers and venues that are potential sites for international competitions are settled in France, especially the stadium of l'Argentière la Bessée, where Danilo Barmaz, monsieur le Marie Patrick Vigne, monsieur Bruno Carlier (Président du comité régional canoë kayak region Paca) and mondsieur Didier Lafay (Directeur du centre de formation canoë kayak region Paca) had the first meeting a month ago.

"We are honored to collaborate with FFCK: this MoU is an another big step for our movement" said Danilo Barmaz.

18th october 2018 - Romania becomes an official member of the World Rafting Federation. Mr. Catalin Campeanu, Responsible for the Rafting Department of the Federatia Romana de Kaiac Canoe declares:

"I am happy to announce that I have succeeded in having the adhesion signed by the President of the Federation: the Romanian Kayak-Canoe Federation is officially a WRF partner! We hope to meet WRF members as soon as possible in order to plan and organize many big projects that we will realize together."

Romanian Federation is ready to adopt WRF rules and looking forward to collaborate and host an international event on its rivers.
Welcome on board!

WRF is glad to announce that on 24th November 2018 the FAC (Federación Argentina de Canoas) Directors Board Meeting celebrated in La Plata city signed the WRF membership application.
According to the Cooperative Agreement between ICF and WRF, WRF approved the application of the Federación Argentina de Canoas: FAC is officially a Member of the World Rafting Federation.

The entrance of Argentina represents another important step for the World Rafting in South America.

“With Argentina, Chile, Brasil and the other WRF Members we are ready to develop the WRF Pan-American Council” said Mr. Massimo Desiati, WRF Executive Board Member.

Today (14/11/2018), the President of the National Olympic Committee of Armenia, Mr. Gagik Tsarukyan, met and congratulated the Para-Rafting Armenian National Teams on their important results achieved in Kiev during the

WRF Pre-Worlds (4-8 October 2018). Mr. Gagik Tsarukyan agrees to further help the development of rafting in Armenia and he stressed that he will be always ready to support the worldwide development of this beautiful sport.

"World Rafting Federation is thankful to National Olympic Committee of Armenia for supporting Armenian Teams to participate in World Para Rafting Event. We admire your sportsmen and coaches for their courage to cover so long way Armenia - Ukraine and represent Armenia worthily" said the WRF President, Danilo Barmaz.

In the coming days the Armenian delegation will meet also Mr.
Gabriel Ghazaryan, Sport Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs of the Republic of Armenia.

Yesterday (7th October) the World Rafting Federation (WRF) and the Turkish Rafting Federation have signed an important agreement for the development of "WRF Training Program for raft and coaches" in Turkey.

According this agreement signed in Kiev, during the WRF Para Rafting Test Event,
Turkish Rafting Federation is being engaged by the WRF to act as "Program Manager and Coordinator" in Turkey for implementing and managing the WRF Chilean Guide Training Program.

Turkish Rafting Federation, as WRF Member, is entitled to certificate the WRF Turkish National Raft Guide.

The Turkish Rafting Federation will develop and manage the "WRF Training Program for raft and coaches" according the principles defined in WRF Rules and Programs.

Mr. Murat ALI ALAÇ has been appointed as Responsible for the administrative management of the Programme in Turkey.

When it will be developed in all its aspects, the WRF Commission shall verify that the WRF Chilean Training Guide Program reaches the standards defined by the "WRF Training Program for raft and coaches".

Furthermore WRF Secretariat has received different turkish applications for hosting the 2019 World Cup. The bid of the Tunceli's city has passed the preliminary checks. The final decision will be taken by the Executive Board in the next weeks. "I'm very pleased with these important successes for my country - said Fikret YARDIMCI, WRF Vice President and President of Turkish Federation - Now we will keep working on the Tunceli's bid"

XXXVII ICF ORDINARY CONGRESS Budapest – Hungary 2018

On 30th April 2018 WRF has been recognised by the the International Canoe Federation and, as an Associate Member, has been invited to the biennial ICF Ordinary Congress that took place in Budapest (Hungary) on 23rd-24th November 2018.

The WRF delegation was composed by Mr. Danilo Barmaz (WRF President), Mr. Matteo Benciolini (WRF Secretary General) and Mr. Francesco Fiorini (WRF Strategic Cooperation Manager).

The Congress has been opened by the ICF President, Mr. José Perurena, who welcomed the World Rafting Federation in front of the 66 ICF Delegations present and thanked Mr. Danilo Barmaz for the attendance.

The presidents of the Organising Committee introduced the presentations of the next Olympic Games: Mr. Toshihiko Furuya for Tokyo 2020 and Mr. Tony Estanguet, who is the ICF Vice- President, for Paris 2024.

During the reports by the ICF Executive Committee the Canoe Federations gave several inputs about rafting. At first ICF President Perurena explained the structure of the Memorandum of Understanding between International Canoe Federation and World Rafting Federation to all the ICF Members: the two federations are cooperating in order to improve both the paddle sports and the river world.

After these bilateral meetings between WRF and the National Canoe Federations new countries manifested interest in the WRF project, sharing the aim of improving their national rafting organization and agonistic field: we are working in order to offer a chance to the federations to grow and a dream to their athletes, with the opportunity of a career to realize it.

"It was a great honour to be present and meet a lot of ICF Members - said Danilo Barmaz, WRF President - Our philosophy coincides exactly with ICF vision of paddlesports. There is a great synergy among us. We will keep working on the development of WorldRafting and the positioning of rafting in the paddlesport world."

First gold for Belarus and another successful WRF Conference in Kiev: the Para-Rafting Commission's Members, technicians, coaches and athletes defined the Para-rafting rules.

Belarus is the first country that takes a gold in a WRF Para-Rafting Event, the competition that took place in Kiev, 4th-8th October 2018: a positive feedback for the 2019 Para-Rafting Worlds.

The competition showed many different aspects that has been analyzed by the WRF Para-Rafting Commission during the conference with several Para-Rafting athletes, keen to hear about future plans of their sport. Max Manfredi, italian member of the Paralympic Comittee, was one of them.

6 years ago he had an accident but now he paddles in the front-right of the Italian team and moreover Kiev was not his first international experience.

Indeed, before the amputation of the right tibia, he was a passionate high-level athlete of table tennis; after his surgery he discovered new worlds: "It is a new life. Someone says everything happens for a reason and I am not sorry for what happened to me: it seems it had to go in this way and I am happy with what I have now."

When he woke up in the hospital he saw a new opportunity: the Paralympic Games. 6 years have passed and since then he approached 6 other sports: in addiction to table tennis (at the moment he is the number 3 in Itlay) he practises at a competitive level, ice sledge hockey, sitting volley, windsurf, rafting and badminton "I am the italian numer 2 of single badminton and the Italian champion of double badminton: I have never heard of this sport before the accident and now I love it".

4 years ago he took part to the first Italian para-rafting team and since Kiev he is officially working with WRF in order to take our sport to the Paralympic Games.

In the Paralympic Committee physical, intellectual and visual disability are officially recognised. In Kiev there were teams composed only of the first two categories, but in the next months WRF Executive Board will approve the official para-rafting ones.

WRF has launched its Training Programme for Raft Guide & Coaches. The Programme is the result of the WRF Commission’s work started in Kosovo during the week of WRF World Cup in Zubin Potok (from 22nd to 24th June 2018). On that occasion members of the national federations had the first workshop about the competence's fields of a worldwide training programme for river guide and coach: safety, techniques, knowledges about environment and coaching.

The aim of the Training Programme is to implement a federal worldwide system based on the competences and knowledges of different levels of guides and coaches. It is a tool to facilitate young people's access to the labour market and to implement the dual career goal for paddle athletes. According to the WRF philosophy the target is to improve the international mobility: following the water flow on the other side of the planet, because of rafting's seasonality, guides can work and promote the paddle sport in different continents in the same year.

Christian Huenchuleo (President of the Chilean Federation), Xavier Postiaux (Belgian experienced rafting and canoe instructor) and Andrea Gatti (Vice-President of the Italian Federation), representing their own federations and according to the others, shared their river experiences in the agonistic and guide's world.

"Taking part to this project is extremely important for Chile: I am very happy about this collaboration with a selected group of professional technicians and honored to transmit my own knowledge about rafting, developed during years of river life. The Chilean Federation wants to help in this movement that will professionalize this amazing discipline day by day. Working in line with the World Rafting Federation is essential for us, in order to develop the agonistic sport in our country and to facilitate the formation of qualified coaches and guides who can work abroad." said Christian Huenchuleo.

"When the president Danilo Barmaz proposed to me to take part in this working group I was immediately excited. - Xavier Postiaux said - I had the opportunity to work with passionate and competent colleagues and I hope that this document will be a reference for the WRF members, not only because of its nature but also because of the ideals behind the project: an international development of this sport, a common professionalization and also new possible opportunities for an international mobility. Step by step growing and performing!"

Andrea Gatti, event manager of the WRC 2018 in Italy, introduces the Training Programme: "For this project I had the pleasure of sharing my experience of more than twenty years in the Italian Federation with my colleagues and friends of the other federations.
The WRF training programme is a document that sets the common skills required by the

guides and coaches's formation of the federations associated with the WRF. We shared our river experiences and knowledges in both the agonistic and commercial worlds and created this document in the clearst way we could. In the programme the skills required by guides and coaches are described with the progression of the different levels of formation. Agonism and commercial/touristic rafting are faced in parallel, with their different technical and pratical features. Every national federation is autonomous in the decision of timing and methods to led their athletes to reach the skills required, approved by WRF members. This common line (sharing levels, competences and knowledges) guarantees the international exchange and comparison of experiences and resources and also evens and improves the wolrdwide formation's quality. It is not a static and definitive document, but a platform that will be updated, completed and perfected as every training requires."