Kelowna paddlers win top Canadian female and male racers at championship in BC

A pair of Kelowna paddlers have earned top Canadian honours for another year during a championship event in Squamish this weekend.

Sally Wallick and Greg Redman dominated the waves at the Canadian Downwind Championships on Saturday. Wallick finished as the fastest Canadian female paddler, placing fourth overall in the female division, while Redman earned top Canadian male and finished 15th overall.

The 25-year-old paddler, Wallick, finished the 21-kilometre route in only 1:36:45, earning her the title for the second year in a row.

“The race is special because there are many different sections with varying conditions with wind and waves,” said Wallick.

“My goal was to relax in the building waves and focus on linking waves and preserving as much energy as I could."

Redman, in comparison, finished in 1:30:32 to earn the top Canadian male title this year and has been the title defender since first winning in 2016, followed by wins in 2017 and 2018.

“The race was awesome,” said Redman.

“We surged and sprinted for the first two-thirds of the race and then as we approached Squamish the combination of cold water from the river meeting the incoming tide in combination with the wind made for some tricky and challenging conditions."

For a full list of competitors, including other KPC athletes who finished strong, click here.