Canoe Sprint World Championships Poznań 2026: final medal table and championship review

Published

2026-08-31T07:40:48+00:00

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PaddleStats

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

The 2026 ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships in Poznań ended on 30 August with 37 gold, 35 silver and 37 bronze medals shared by 25 countries and delegations. Hungary collected the most hardware — fourteen medals — but tied Germany at the top of the title count with five apiece.

Overview

Five days, 249 races, 892 athletes from 78 countries and delegations. Poznań staged the canoe sprint world championships for the fourth time, after 1990, 2001 and 2010. The 36 A finals split into 24 sprint events and 12 paracanoe classes. The first two days settled nothing at all; every one of the 109 podium places was handed out between Friday afternoon and Sunday evening.

The title count does not match the number of finals, and that is not an error. The men's C1 1000 m produced two world champions: Martin Fuksa and Daniel Fejes share the same 4:07.44 in the protocol. A second dead heat decided bronze in the women's K1 500 m, where Anna Puławska and Natalia Drobot both stopped the clock at 1:48.58. Hence 37 golds and 37 bronzes from 36 races.

Hungary's fourteen medals, Germany's five titles

Hungary reached the podium fourteen times, one more than the neutral athletes and five more than Germany. Eight of those medals were silver, which is the least satisfying way to lead a table. Bálint Kopasz lost the 1000 m by 0.22 s, Ádám Varga the 500 m by 0.41 s, Anna Lucz the 200 m by 0.60 s. Add the runner-up finishes of Ágnes Kiss in the C1 500 m, Katalin Varga in KL2, the women's C4, Zsófia Csorba and Emese Kőhalmi over 5000 m.

A year earlier in Milan the split ran the other way: seven titles and three silvers. Three of those seven stayed in Hungarian hands — Zsóka Csikós over 1000 m, Péter Kiss in KL1 and the men's C4 crew of Kristóf Kollár, István Juhász, Jonatán Hajdu and Fejes. The rest moved on.

Germany won a single final in Milan, and it was a paracanoe one. They leave Poznań with five titles and no silver at all: five golds, four bronzes, nothing in between. Jacob Schopf and Max Lemke won the K4 and the K2, Carlotta Loske the C2 500 m and the C1 5000 m, Pauline Jagsch the K1 500 m. All five came in sprint classes; in paracanoe Germany took two bronzes.

The neutral athletes left a different kind of mark: thirteen medals, eight of them bronze — more third places than anyone. Their three titles went to Aleksandra Dupik in VL1, Zakhar Petrov and Ivan Shtyl in the C2 500 m, and Yuliya Trushkina with Inna Nedelkina in the C2 200 m. In Milan they had won five.

Brazil built almost all of its eight medals in paracanoe — six of them, including two silvers for Fernando Paulo in two different classes on the same weekend. The one gold came in the men's C1 500 m, where Isaquias Queiroz beat Fuksa by 0.24 s. Spain, with six medals, was the strongest team without a title; Uzbekistan, with four, the second.

Twelve defences, twenty-four changes

Twelve of the 36 titles won in Milan in 2025 came back to the same hands. Canoe and paracanoe classes travelled best: Liudmyla Luzan over 200 m, Petrov and Shtyl in the C2, Fuksa over the kilometre, Yi Pu in VL3, Serhii Yemelianov in KL3, Charlotte Henshaw in KL2, Katherinne Wollermann in KL1, Hope Gordon in VL3, Melina Andersson over 5000 m and Csikós over 1000 m.

Twenty-four events changed champion, and that is where the story of this week sits. Australia won five silvers and no gold a year ago; in Poznań it won four finals. Thomas Green turned a 1000 m bronze into the 500 m title, Kailey Harlen and Drobot took the K2, Curtis McGrath the KL2 and Benjamin Sainsbury VL1. Ukraine travelled the other way: four titles in Milan, one here. Luzan, who won four events last year, finished with one gold and one silver.

Six athletes left Poznań with two titles: Fernando Pimenta (1000 m and 5000 m), Loske, Gordon, Schopf, Lemke and Fejes. Only Jagsch took three medals home — gold over 500 m plus bronzes in the K4 and the K2.

Eleven finals were decided by less than a quarter of a second, three of them by under a tenth: men's KL2 (0.03), men's KL3 (0.09) and the men's C1 200 m, where Poland won gold by a tenth. Plus one race the stopwatch could not separate at all.

Twelve paracanoe finals spread across eight countries, but one stood out. Great Britain won four of them, all in women's classes: Henshaw in KL2, Gordon in KL3 and VL3, Emma Wiggs in VL2. The British team won nothing in the Olympic classes — the whole haul is four golds and a bronze for Stuart Wood in VL3.

Australia added two paracanoe titles; Chile, China, Georgia, Hungary, the United States and the neutral athletes took one each. Steven Haxton won the men's VL2 and was the only American to stand on the top step all week.

Four of the twelve paracanoe titles were successfully defended. The oldest champion of the championships was Wiggs, born in 1980; the youngest was Loske, born in 2007. Twenty-seven years apart.

Poland at home: one gold, two bronzes

The hosts won three medals, one fewer than in Milan, and one title instead of two. Oleksii Koliadych took the C1 200 m, 40.95 to 41.05 against defending champion Artur Guliev. Puławska added bronze over 500 m and Alex Borucki bronze in the men's K1 500 m.

There is a second layer to that ledger. Puławska won the K1 500 m in Milan and, with Martyna Klatt, the K2 as well; in Poznań those became third and seventh. Borucki, born in 2006, took a first senior world medal in a final that contained the defending world champion. Off the podium, Poland had a fourth place in the women's K4, fifth in the women's C4 and fifth for Wiktor Głazunow over 5000 m.

Twenty-five countries won medals in Poznań, four fewer than in Milan. The podium narrowed — and yet the people standing on it came from very different generations, from Wiggs to Loske, from Ivan Shtyl, born 1986, to Robin Hirsch, born 2007.

What's next

The season does not end on Lake Malta. September brings the Polish Canoe Marathon Championships and the Olympic Hopes Regatta; October closes with the ICF Hangzhou Super Cup and the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships in Gualeguaychú.

What matters more is what these results do to the Olympic calendar. They feed the Los Angeles 2028 qualification ranking, and the balance of power on show in Poznań — Germany in kayaks, Hungary in canoes, Australia across the board — will frame the whole cycle.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who topped the medal table at the 2026 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznań?

Hungary, with fourteen medals (5 gold, 8 silver, 1 bronze). On titles alone Hungary shares first place with Germany — both won five finals.

How many medals did Poland win in Poznań 2026?

Three: gold for Oleksii Koliadych in the C1 200 m, bronze for Anna Puławska in the K1 500 m and bronze for Alex Borucki in the men's K1 500 m.

How many medals were awarded, and to how many countries?

One hundred and nine: 37 gold, 35 silver and 37 bronze, shared by 25 countries and delegations. Golds and bronzes number 37 from 36 finals because two races ended in dead heats.

Which athletes won the most golds?

Six won two events each: Fernando Pimenta, Carlotta Loske, Hope Gordon, Jacob Schopf, Max Lemke and Daniel Fejes. Pauline Jagsch was the only athlete with three medals — one gold and two bronzes.

Did Hungary underperform despite leading the table?

Eight silvers against five titles invites the question, especially since Milan produced the opposite ratio: seven golds and three silvers. Three of the lost finals were inside a second. On the other hand, no other team reached the podium fourteen times, and Hungary was the only one to medal in kayak, canoe and paracanoe alike.

Is Ukraine's dominance in women's canoe over?

The numbers point that way. Ukraine won four events in Milan and one in Poznań. Liudmyla Luzan, who won four finals last year — both singles and both doubles — defended the C1 200 m, finished second in the C2 500 m and watched Canada's Sophia Jensen win the C1 500 m.

Did Poland underperform at home?

Three medals and one title is down on last year, and the women's K2 dropping from first to seventh is the sorest point. Set against that: Borucki's first senior world medal and Koliadych's gold won by a tenth of a second. A championship of two speeds rather than a failure.

Are Germany back on top of canoe sprint?

Five titles after one a year ago, a Schopf–Lemke double in the K4 and K2, two golds for the nineteen-year-old Loske — and not a single silver, meaning Germany either won or finished outside the top two. In the sprint classes that is the best return of any team: five titles against Hungary's four.

Poznań signed off with Hungary on top of the table, a dozen countries sharing the wins and Fernando Pimenta as the loudest name of the final day. The season closes with the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships in Gualeguaychú and the ICF Hangzhou Super Cup; the full story of the last day is in our report from Sunday's finals.

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