COLUMBUS, Ga. (WTVM) -18 countries, nearly two hundred athletes, two states, and two cities in the Chattahoochee Valley competed in the Kayak Freestyle World Championships. Some of the competitors were as young as 15 years old.
The world kayak competition brought in over 9 million dollars from this event and the other world championships that happened last year. This year though, the hotels are booked, and athletes tell News Leader 9 that they enjoyed the experience.
The world championships for the ICF freestyle was here in Columbus, with the Chattahoochee serving up the rapid waves.
Athletes like Landon Miller were excited to compete against athletes from across the world.
“to have other competitors from all different parts of the world, be able to come in and be able to have the same feeling of a lovely environment,” said Miller.
ADVERTISEMENT
Miller has placed first this year and came in third when defending his world title. He completed some special maneuvers on the hooch to secure the win.
“My favorite is called a pan am, it is like a vertical blunt, so it’s a side flip but you land on your back, so imagine doing an Ariel on flat ground,” said Miller
He said athletes like him, are enjoying the southern hospitality which was the goal for organizations like Uptown Columbus who are hosting the athletes.
“Southern hospitality of course has been at its best, so when you have people from all over the world, they don’t experience the hospitality we have here in the south where they live, they get so excited when we say hello and wave and say please and thank you.” Uptown Columbus director of marketing and events Tracey Green.
The organization says both Phenix City and Columbus are benefiting from this event and last year’s World Cup.
The final competition was Saturday, but it’s not the only event that took place this weekend, The Rush South music event was also there for folks to enjoy Uptown Columbus.
Copyright 2023 WTVM. All rights reserved.