New Zealand's sprint kayak team opens its international season this weekend at the 2026 ICF Canoe Sprint World Cup in Szeged, Hungary. Racing runs from Friday 8 May through to Sunday 10 May at the iconic Maty-ér venue, and Olympic qualification ranking points are on the line from the first stroke.
This is the start of the qualification journey for the Kiwi squad, not a warm-up. The field includes Olympic champions and rising talents, and the Maty-ér has a reputation for delivering world-class competition.
New Zealand has entered athletes across six events. Aimee Fisher lines up in the Women's K1 500m, while Quaid Thompson tackles both the Men's K1 1000m and the K1 5000m. James Munro and Kurtis Imrie pair up in the Men's K2 500m, as do Hamish Legarth and Grant Clancy. All four combine for the Men's K4 500m. On the women's side, Olivia Brett, Greer Morley, Fisher, and Lucy Matehaere contest the Women's K4 500m.
Day one racing for the Kiwis begins at 8.36pm NZT with the Men's K4 heat, followed by the Women's K4 at 9.12pm. Both crews could be back in the water for semifinals from around 10.42pm and 11.00pm respectively. Fisher then races her K1 500m heat at 1.36am, with Thompson in his K1 1000m heat at 3.12am. Semifinals in both events follow through the early hours of Saturday morning NZT.
Sky Sport will broadcast the event in New Zealand across the weekend. Racing can also be streamed live through the Planet Canoe YouTube channel, the International Canoe Federation's official channel, with a membership subscription available for $16.99 NZD per month.
Live results and the full schedule are available at results.szeged2026.com.
