This page is dedicated to the joint 2021 Alberta Provincials/Western Canada Freestyle Team Trials. It contains details of the event and links to necessary info to compete at the Freestyle World Championships for team Canada.
What is Team Trials?
Team Trials is a freestyle canoe and kayak competition hosted by Canoe Kayak Canada. It typically occurs every second year and is the pathway to joining team Canada to compete at the world championships. This being said, the competition is open to any participant, whether they intend to join team Canada or not. We encourage folks to enter and participate in a fun, uplifting event, surrounded by other athletes looking to push their abilities.
Where is Team Trials happening in 2021?
With the covid 19 pandemic restricting travel, the CKC Freestyle Comittee decided to run two congruent Team Trials events to make it more accessible to Canadians. These events will be held in Valleyfield, QC and in Kananaskis, AB.
When is Western Team Trials at Kananaskis?
Western Team Trials will be held during the Alberta Provincial Championships on September 11 & 12, 2021. Friday the 10th will be designated as open training. The schedule will be posted on the provincials main page here>
What are the categories for Team Trials?
Categories will be split by age, gender, and boat type into the 6 following categories.
- K1 Men
- K1 Women
- C1 Unisex
- OC1 Unisex
- Junior K1 Men (15-18)
- Junior K1 Women (15-18)
How does the competition work?
The competition will be run using current ICF rules and trick appendices. There will be 3 rounds held for each category; Preliminaries, Semi-Finals, and Finals. Where entry numbers are 10 or under, preliminary rounds will be dropped. The following table will be used for calculating scores in each round.
| Round | Runs | Scoring | Competitors |
| Preliminary | 2 of 45 sec | both scores added | all entries |
| Semi-Finals | 2 of 45 sec | best score | 10 |
| Finals | 3 of 45 sec | best score | 5 |
What is the selection criteria for team Canada?
All of the related information can be found on the CKC website here: https://canoekayak.ca/selection-criteria/
What does it cost to compete at Alberta Provincials/Team Trials?
To compete in regular Alberta Provincials programming (Slalom, Cross, Minor Freestyle), a paddler must be an AWA Member. Furthermore a $20 competition fee applys for an individual competition or $40 for all regular competitions at provincials. Registration here>
Entering the Major Freestyle event (Team Trials Preliminary and Semi Finals) will cost an extra $20 that will go to APL for local sport development.
To proceed into the Team Trials Finals and be considered for team selection, paddlers must also pay a $30 competition fee to CKC which goes toward developing the national team infrastructure. (This fee will have already been paid by paddlers who participated in the Training Camps).
Paddlers may enter as many categories as they qualify for without extra charges.
Camping is $15/unit/night or $26/night for a family.
Will there be any Coaching available?
At the moment, we have no coaching clinics scheduled for the weekend. Brandon Willms will be available at canoe meadows throughout August to offer private coaching to help prepare athletes for Team Trials. Contact us to organize a session at admin@albertaplayboaters.ca
