Hungary's team for the 2026 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznan

Published

2026-08-13T20:05:14+00:00

Full competition results: ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships - Poznan

Hungary is treating the 2026 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznan (26–30 August) as the event of the season: 37 athletes travel to Poland, the largest team in the field. The federation's presidency approved the squad on 12 August, and it is led by Bálint Kopasz — Olympic champion and three-time world champion, defending his K1 1000 m title on the Malta course.

Poznan hosts these championships for the first time since 2010. For Hungary it is both the peak of the season and the first serious reckoning on the road to Los Angeles.

Hungary's squad for the 2026 World Championships in Poznan

Sixteen in kayak, twelve in canoe, nine in paracanoe. Dávid Tóth runs the kayak programme, László Foltán jr the canoe, Botond Hajdu the paracanoe. In the men's kayak nothing changed from the June European Championship team — the staff decided there was nothing to fix.

Kopasz defends his title, but has stopped winning everything

Kopasz's career reads like a checklist: Olympic gold in Tokyo over K1 1000 m (3:20.64), bronze in Paris over the same distance (3:25.68), world titles in 2019, 2022 and 2023. It is that last one he defends at Malta.

The 2026 season has been uneven for him — and not because he slowed down. He won the Montreal World Cup, but finished second in Szeged and at the European Championships in Montemor-o-Velho. His Szeged time of 3:22.33 is the fastest he has recorded in two years — quicker than the 3:25.68 that took Olympic bronze in Paris, and quicker than the 3:27.46 that won him the world title in 2023.

So Kopasz is going faster than he was when he won, and still finishing second. He has not fallen off; the field has come up. Defending the title in Poznan will be harder than winning it was three years ago.

Alongside him travels Sándor Tótka, Olympic champion over K1 200 m in Tokyo, now paddling in the four. That boat — Nádas, Fodor, Kurucz, Tótka — won three of its four races this season, taking second in Brandenburg. It is the steadiest men's crew in the entire championship field.

Two more names round out the programme with very different jobs. Ádám Varga again races two extremes: K1 500 m and K1 5000 m, one event lasting ninety seconds and one lasting over twenty minutes. The 200 m goes to Gergely Balogh, European bronze medallist over the distance this year. Bence Fodor and Levente Kurucz, both in Tótka's four, also race the 200 m double as European silver medallists.

The Hungarian women who simply do not lose

The most interesting part of this team races in the women's boats, and its common thread is distance.

Emese Kőhalmi came home from the European Championships with two golds in two days: K1 5000 m in 22:50.48 and K1 1000 m in 3:56.73. Over five kilometres she is world champion from 2021, 2022 and 2024 — in Samarkand she won the distance in 25:18.91. In Poznan she races the 5000 m only, and nobody enters that event with a stronger record.

Zsóka Csikós defends the K1 1000 m title. A year ago in Racice she swept all three European golds — 5000 m (23:39.69), 1000 m (3:50.29) and 500 m (1:47.90). This season she won the 1000 m in Szeged (3:50.12), was second in Montreal and third over 500 m at the European Championships.

The most relentless of them, though, is Zsófia Csorba. Over C1 5000 m she won in Szeged (28:19.71) and Montreal (28:50.49) this year, having won in Poznan (25:26.78) and Szeged again the season before. Her federation describes her in one word — unbeaten — and the season does not argue.

Then there is Anna Lucz, twice European champion over K1 200 m. Her silver in Montemor-o-Velho this year has a specific context: the title was taken off her by Denmark's Frederikke Hauge Mørcke, who covered the 200 m in 39.345 s against the Hungarian's 40.33 s. The rematch at Malta shapes up as one of the better duels of these championships — Mørcke arrives as the headline name of Denmark's squad.

In the women's Olympic canoe events Hungary leans on proven names. Ágnes Kiss and Bianka Nagy race C2 500 m as European silver medallists, and Kiss adds the single over 500 m plus a seat in the four defending its world title. The 200 m single goes to Petra Paragi. Exactly one name changed from the European Championship team: Dóra Horányi comes in for the 200 m double alongside Réka Opavszky.

The canoe: the fastest Hungarian double there has ever been

In the canoe the loudest story is a pair from Paks. Kristóf Kollár and István Juhász won C2 500 m in Montreal in 1:36.88 — the quickest time any Hungarian double has ever produced in the event. A year earlier they took bronze at the World Championships. In Poznan they race an Olympic event, so the points from that start feed straight into the ranking for Los Angeles.

The same two men also climb into the four alongside Dániel Fejes and Jonatán Hajdu — and that boat is the defending world champion. It won in Montreal in 1:32.96.

Fejes carries the busiest programme of anyone on the team: C1 500 m, C4 500 m and the Olympic single over 1000 m. In Montreal he finished second in the single, right behind Olympic champion Martin Fuksa — a name that will keep coming back in Poznan.

Over five kilometres Hungary sends Balázs Adolf, a two-time world champion who won two World Cups this season and finished second at the European Championships. His 2023 world title came in 22:12.97.

The selection's surprise: two debutants in the double

One decision in this squad did not follow the rankings.

Flóra Tölgyesi and Bianka Hofer — aged 20 and 18, still racing age-group events in July — won the supplementary qualifying race two weeks ago and jumped into the team for K2 200 m. Both will make their senior world championship debut in Poznan. The federation itself calls their inclusion the biggest surprise of the selection.

In the paracanoe programme, by contrast, the hierarchy held. Péter Pál Kiss won the European Championships and both World Cups in KL1 this year, and goes to Poznan chasing a sixth world title. Róbert Suba races two classes: second at the Europeans and third in Montreal in KL1, with his VL2 bronze from Montreal his best result of the year. Two women make their debuts — Réka Baranyai in VL1 and Anetta Mazug in KL3.

What's next: a 1.5 multiplier and the road to Los Angeles

The Hungarian announcement does not hedge: points earned in Poznan carry a 1.5 multiplier, in the Paralympic qualification as well as the Olympic one. A win is worth 1500 points against 1000 at a World Cup or continental championship. With 37 athletes entered across nearly every event on the programme, that compounds into an advantage no other country in this field is positioned to build.

The arithmetic is straightforward. A country fielding defending champions in the men's and women's K1 1000 m, in the C4 500 m and in the women's canoe four, plus an unbeaten athlete over 5000 m and the fastest double in its own history, arrives at the World Championships in Poznan genuinely playing for first place in the medal table.

The open question is a different one: whether Hungary can hold what it already owns. Kopasz is faster than a year ago and losing. Lucz lost the European title with a time that would have won gold two seasons back. The field at Malta will be tighter than at any point in this cycle.

Frequently Asked Questions

When and where are the 2026 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznan?

The 2026 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznan run from 26 to 30 August on the Malta regatta course. They are a combined canoe sprint and paracanoe world championships, and Poznan hosts them for the first time since 2010.

How many athletes are on Hungary's squad for the 2026 World Championships in Poznan?

Hungary's squad numbers 37: sixteen in kayak, twelve in canoe and nine in paracanoe. It is the largest team at these championships. The federation's presidency approved it on 12 August 2026.

Who is the biggest name on Hungary's team for the World Championships in Poznan?

Bálint Kopasz, Olympic champion in Tokyo and three-time world champion over K1 1000 m, defending his title in Poznan. The team also includes Sándor Tótka, Olympic champion over K1 200 m in Tokyo, now racing in the four.

Will Hungary top the medal table at the World Championships in Poznan?

They hold the strongest hand: 37 athletes, defending champions in several events and Zsófia Csorba unbeaten over 5000 m this season. It will turn on the Olympic events, where the field is tightest — and there Hungary finished second more often than first in 2026.

Is Bálint Kopasz's era coming to an end?

The numbers point to a tighter field rather than a decline. His 3:22.33 in Szeged is quicker than the time that won him the 2023 world title and quicker than his Olympic bronze in Paris. Even so, he finished second in two of his three starts this season.

Which Hungarian woman is most likely to win gold in Poznan?

Emese Kőhalmi over K1 5000 m — world champion in 2021, 2022 and 2024, and a double European gold medallist in June. Zsófia Csorba is close behind: over C1 5000 m she has won every start she has entered across this season and last.

Who are Flóra Tölgyesi and Bianka Hofer?

Kayakers aged 20 and 18 who won the supplementary qualifying race two weeks before the squad was announced and took the K2 200 m seat. Poznan will be their senior world championship debut, and the federation called their selection the biggest surprise of the process.

Why do the World Championships matter more than a World Cup?

Because under the Los Angeles 2028 qualification system, world championship points carry a 1.5 multiplier. A win is worth 1500 points, against 1000 for a World Cup or continental championship victory. The same rule applies to Paralympic qualification.

Hungary arrives at Malta with a team no rival can match for size or for the number of titles it has to defend. Bálint Kopasz defends the 1000 m in better shape than when he was champion, Emese Kőhalmi enters the 5000 m off two European golds, and Zsófia Csorba has not lost her event in two seasons. The rest of the field is tracked in our guide to the Poznan World Championships, and we have already covered the teams from Italy, Denmark, Great Britain, Australia and the United States.

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