Esme Durrant is a junior athlete who is currently sponsored by Tracsis/MPEC Technology to compete in Canoe Slalom, an Olympic sport for both men and women who race in different categories. These categories are C1 – Canoe, K1 – Kayak single and C2 – Canoe Double. Last year, Tracsis’ support allowed Esme to acquire a brand new Kayak, one of the top models well known around the world.
Esme started the 2016 season in the Premier Division, being ranked at number 40 nationally in Women’s Kayak. At the end of the season she moved up 18 positions and is now ranked 22 (amongst females) in the country. This includes senior female athletes, U23 squad members and J18 girls. In the canoe C1 classification, she started at rank 20 and moved up 5 positions to rank 15 in the top Premier canoe women’s division.
Esme is now in training to prepare her for the first of the 2017 races in March.
Selection to the English National Talent Squad
Throughout 2016, Esme was in the Central Super Regional Squad. Every 6 months the athletes have a profiling weekend where they get tested and can potentially move up the British Canoeing Olympic Pathway. In the October profiling, the athletes were tested on white water skills, speed sessions and gym sessions. Following this, and combined with her outstanding performance throughout the season, Esme has been selected for the English National Talent Squad. In this squad there are a total of 19 athletes selected, only 7 of which are female. Athletes who make it into the squad get better access to British Canoeing Development Coaches and more time on the Lee Valley Olympic Course in London.
Tracsis’ support has helped Esme enormously to enable her to jump to this next level.
European Competition and Training
In the summer, Esme’s squad took the opportunity to travel to the Czech Republic, where they took part in a week’s training on the Prague Troja Slalom Course. This was a great opportunity as it allowed her to paddle on new and challenging water. Esme also participated in international races as she travelled on to Ceske and raced in one of the European Canoe Association Junior races that takes place around Europe.
Tracsis is proud to continue its support of talented young athletes like Esme, providing access to the opportunities they need to succeed in their chosen field.
As well as enabling her to have a fantastic season training and racing, the sponsorship Tracsis has provided has also allowed Esme to continue her Canoeing journey with some of the best equipment available. She is now looking forward to another exciting season, having invested in a brand new ‘iscreem’ C1 canoe boat which will help to further increase her performance.
