Poland at Olympic Hopes 2026: 47 athletes in 51 of 52 events in Bratislava
- Published
- 2026-09-15T12:27:17+00:00
- Author
- PaddleStats
Full competition results: Olympic Hopes Regatta
The Olympic Hopes Regatta 2026, the international canoe sprint regatta for 15-, 16- and 17-year-olds, starts on Thursday 17 September at the Zemník course in Bratislava, and Poland arrive with the second-biggest entry. Their 47 athletes from 23 clubs race in 51 of the 52 events. Many events have two Polish boats, which makes 95 entries; only Hungary, with 104, have more.
Overview
Olympic Hopes, for athletes born between 2009 and 2011, grew out of an agreement between the Polish, Czech, Slovak and Hungarian federations and moves between the four countries: Poznań hosted in 2023, Szeged in 2024 and Račice in 2025. Single boats race by birth year, so the 15-, 16- and 17-year-olds each have their own K1 and C1 events. Doubles are split into a 15–16 group and a 17 group, and the K4 and C4 combine all three ages. The programme has 52 medal events and 322 races over four days, from Thursday's heats to Sunday's 5000 m finals. The start lists published on 15 September show 736 athletes from 40 nations with 1490 entries.
| Nation | Entries | Athletes |
|---|---|---|
| Hungary | 104 | 79 |
| Poland | 95 | 47 |
| Czech Republic | 87 | 38 |
| Germany | 84 | 45 |
| Slovakia (host) | 76 | 45 |
Polish athletes race in almost three events each on average, while Hungary's 79 average fewer than two. Kayak makes up the larger part of the Polish team: 12 girls have 24 entries and 16 boys 28; in canoe, 10 girls have 23 and 9 boys 20. Nineteen of the athletes were born in 2009, fifteen in 2010 and thirteen in 2011, and the team has 22 girls and 25 boys.
Bratislava is familiar water for part of the squad. At the end of May many of them raced the International Regatta Bratislava 2026 and came home with wins in the junior and younger junior categories. Those results make the easiest comparison for this week.
The oldest group: world and European finalists
The team's leading athlete is Sandra Nowak of KS Warta Poznań. The 2009-born canoeist has had the richest season of anyone in the squad. At the ICF Junior and U23 World Championships in Halifax she reached the A final of the C1 500 m and finished seventh. Three weeks later, at the Junior and U23 European Championships in Szeged, she was fourth in 2:26.216, just off the podium. In May she won the junior C1 500 m in Bratislava (2:16.46), and at the Polish Youth Olympics in Bydgoszcz she took three gold medals, in the C1 200 m, the C1 500 m and the C2 500 m.
Her C2 partner is clubmate Martyna Rassak. In Halifax Rassak raced in Poland's C4 500 m, which finished sixth, and in Szeged she was fourth in the mixed C4 500 m. In Bratislava both race five events: the C1 200 m, C1 500 m, C1 5000 m, C2 500 m and C4 500 m. Only eight boats are entered in the C2 500 m for 17-year-old women, so there are no heats. Friday's race at 13:00 decides the medals straight away, and Nowak and Rassak start from lane four.
In women's kayak the core is a K4 whose members have raced together in different combinations. Milena Włodarczyk of UKS Kopernik Bydgoszcz and Kinga Chojnacka of UMKS Zryw Wolsztyn were in the K4 500 m that finished fifth in Halifax (1:45.55). Włodarczyk has also raced against senior athletes this season. In June, at the 89th Polish Senior Championships, she won K4 500 m silver in a club crew with U23 world champion Weronika Marczewska, and in August she won the K4 500 m at the Polish U23 Championships (1:43.45). In Bratislava the K4 is completed by Martyna Kowalska of Zryw, eighth in the K1 500 m final in Szeged, and Zofia Maczkowska of CWZS Zawisza Bydgoszcz, who won the K4 500 m at the Youth Olympics. Kowalska and Maczkowska also race the K2 500 m together, while Włodarczyk and Chojnacka form Poland's second K2.
In men's kayak the most championship experience belongs to Bartosz Kulpa and Maciej Bargiel of KS GPower Gorzów. They were sixth in the K2 500 m final in Halifax (1:33.51) and won the K2 200 m and K2 500 m in Bydgoszcz. In Bratislava they race the K2 500 m, the K2 1000 m and the K4. In the K4 500 m they are joined by Szymon Witkowski of MKS Czechowice-Dziedzice, sixth in the K2 1000 m final at the European Championships, and Michał Słowiński. Słowiński won bronze in the K2 1000 m at the Polish Senior Championships in June. At the same championships Leonid Liuliaiev of KS Energetyk Poznań, who races the K1 500 m, the K2 500 m and Poland's second K4 in Bratislava, took bronze in a club K4 500 m. Both were born in 2009.
In men's canoe the most experienced athlete is Maciej Falbagowski of KKS Nowa Sól, who raced the mixed C4 500 m in Szeged alongside Rassak. In Bratislava he pairs with Bartosz Osiński of KST Włókniarz Chełmża; the two were third in the C2 1000 m in Bratislava in May. Saturday's C2 1000 m final for 17-year-olds will include two Polish boats. The second features Franciszek Oset of SKS Cresovia Białystok.
The younger groups: May wins in Bratislava
Among the 15- and 16-year-olds, women's canoe has produced the best results of the season. Magdalena Turowska of Dojlidy Białystok Canoe & Kajak Team, born in 2011, won all four finals she entered in Bratislava in May: the C1 200 m (54.675), the C1 500 m (2:18.70), and the C2 200 m and C2 500 m with Aleksandra Kalisz of UPKS Poncio 2010 Lidzbark. Kalisz added silver in the C1 500 m. In Bydgoszcz Turowska won the younger juniors' C1 500 m at the Youth Olympics. In Bratislava the two race in different doubles: Turowska with Anna Vdovychenko of Zawisza, Kalisz with Wiktoria Nowakowska.
Among the 2010-born kayakers, two Polish athletes fought for the K1 1000 m win in May. Julia Kamieniecka of GPower won in 4:38.02, and Milena Janiak of UKS Olimpijczyk Nowe Chechło was second, 0.58 s behind. Janiak and Maria Sowińska of Zawisza also won the K2 500 m (1:56.22). In Bydgoszcz Kamieniecka won two titles, the K1 500 m and the K2 500 m with clubmate Natalia Przybyła. In Bratislava Janiak and Sowińska race together again, and Kamieniecka pairs with Ewa Wiatrowska of Zawisza.
Among the boys, Hubert Florczak of Kopernik stands out. He was second in the younger juniors' K1 500 m in May (1:48.48), and at the Youth Olympics he won the K1 500 m and, with Krystian Kolczyński, the K2 1000 m. Fortunat Łakomy of UKS Victoria Wałcz won the K1 1000 m in Bydgoszcz after winning the 10,000 m race at the Polish Long Distance Championships in Wolsztyn. On Sunday he races the K1 5000 m for 16-year-olds.
In men's canoe, the Youth Olympics titles went to Wojciech Miśkiewicz of KS Posnania Poznań in the C1 500 m and C1 1000 m, and to Antoni Maćkowiak of WTS Astoria Bydgoszcz in the C2 1000 m. Miśkiewicz is entered in five events, as are Nowak and Rassak. In Bratislava he and Maćkowiak race the C2 500 m and C2 1000 m together.
Clubs: Zawisza, GPower, Kopernik and Warta
The squad comes from 23 clubs, and four of them have sent at least four athletes.
| Club | Athletes in the team |
|---|---|
| CWZS Zawisza Bydgoszcz | 8 |
| KS GPower Gorzów | 5 |
| UKS Kopernik Bydgoszcz | 4 |
| KS Warta Poznań | 4 |
Zawisza have athletes in all three birth years. In kayak they are Maczkowska, Sowińska, Wiatrowska and Maja Brąszkiewicz; in canoe, Vdovychenko, Wiktoria Nowakowska, Nadia Nowakowska and Bartosz Miś. GPower send five kayakers: Kulpa, Bargiel, Kamieniecka, Przybyła and Mikołaj Kleist, Polish long-distance champion in the younger juniors' K2. Warta Poznań are represented only by canoeists: Nowak, Rassak, Matylda Welke-Pawlowska and Anna Wilińska.
From Kopernik Bydgoszcz come Włodarczyk, born in 2009, and the younger Florczak, Kolczyński and Viviana Żukowska. Żukowska, born in 2011, raced alongside Włodarczyk in the club K4 that won silver at the Polish Senior Championships in June. In Bratislava she races in the 15-year-old class.
Energetyk Poznań, KKS Nowa Sól, Włókniarz Chełmża, Zryw Wolsztyn, UKS Victoria Wałcz and WTS Orzeł Wałcz have two athletes each, which means four members of the team come from the town of Wałcz.
What's next
Thursday brings the heats and semi-finals over 1000 m, the women's C1 200 m heats and the first doubles heats. Friday and Saturday have the 500 m heats and the first 33 finals. Saturday's C2 1000 m for 17-year-olds is also a straight final, with two Polish crews. Sunday belongs to the long distance: all twelve 5000 m finals take place on the same day, and Poland have boats in eleven of them.
For the 2009-born athletes this is the last Olympic Hopes. Next year they will be too old for this regatta and will race only in the junior category, competing for places in the national team for the world and European championships. Several of them have already raced in A finals in Halifax and Szeged. For many of the younger athletes it will be their first international field of this size.
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where is Olympic Hopes 2026?
From 17 to 20 September 2026 at the Zemník course in Bratislava. The first races start on Thursday around 9:00 local time and the last 5000 m finals are on Sunday afternoon.
How many Polish athletes are racing at Olympic Hopes 2026?
47 athletes born between 2009 and 2011, from 23 clubs. They race in 51 of the 52 events with 95 entries, a number beaten only by Hungary (104). The Czech Republic have 87 entries, Germany 84 and hosts Slovakia 76.
Who has the most international experience in the Polish team?
Sandra Nowak. In 2026 she was seventh in the C1 500 m A final at the Junior World Championships in Halifax and fourth at the Junior European Championships in Szeged (2:26.216). Martyna Rassak, Milena Włodarczyk, Kinga Chojnacka, Bartosz Kulpa and Maciej Bargiel have also raced world championship A finals.
When do Polish athletes race for the first medals?
On Friday 18 September. The finals start at 9:25 with the K1 1000 m, and Sandra Nowak and Martyna Rassak are guaranteed a final: only eight boats are entered in the women's C2 500 m for 17-year-olds, so the 13:00 race decides the medals directly.
Can Poland expect medals in Bratislava?
There are grounds for it, but no guarantees. In Bratislava in May, Magdalena Turowska won four finals, Julia Kamieniecka won the K1 1000 m, and Milena Janiak and Maria Sowińska won the K2 500 m. The field will be much stronger than in May, and the 17-year-old events include junior world and European medallists from Canada, Brazil, Germany, France and Serbia.
Is the 2011 generation the future of Polish canoe sprint?
It is too early for such a strong claim, because these athletes are 15. Some names are worth remembering, though. Magdalena Turowska won four finals in Bratislava in May and the Youth Olympics C1 500 m title. Antoni Maćkowiak won the Youth Olympics C2 1000 m, and Krystian Kolczyński the K2 1000 m with Hubert Florczak. Viviana Żukowska raced in the K4 that took silver at the Polish Senior Championships.
Which club has the most athletes in the team?
CWZS Zawisza Bydgoszcz, with eight. KS GPower Gorzów follow with five, and UKS Kopernik Bydgoszcz and KS Warta Poznań have four each.
How many 5000 m races will Poland contest?
All twelve 5000 m finals are on Sunday, and Poland race in eleven of them with 21 boats, two in most categories. The only final without a Polish boat is the men's C1 5000 m for 16-year-olds.
Heats on Thursday, the first finals on Friday and Saturday, and 21 Polish boats over 5000 m on Sunday. Sandra Nowak and Martyna Rassak race for a medal as early as Friday at 13:00, and the whole regatta can be followed on the Olympic Hopes Regatta 2026 page.