The Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Race took place once again over Easter Weekend.
It was a long road to the start line this year for the DW community, not only in regard to the hours of training put in, but also in terms of fundraising to ensure the event could go ahead.
The marathon paddling community have really rallied behind one of the most notable races in the marathon calendar to ensure its success, and even though paddlers were unable to finish the full length of the intended race, we saw some incredibly dedicated performances from those paddling over the weekend.
Tom Sharpe and Anoushka Freeman of Richmond Canoe Club took the win for the senior doubles race this year. A firm favourite from the start, the pair worked together seamlessly to be the first across the line in Teddington with a time of 13:43:46.
This is a back to back win for Sharpe who broke the 44-year record for fastest senior double Devizes to Westminster finish with Keith Moule last year. This becomes his third win across different classes.
Freeman completed the mixed crew and became one of three women to ever take the win of this iconic race.
Despite recent storms causing high water levels, all participants powered on in extraordinary conditions. This year truly demonstrated the range of skill and knowledge of the course from the paddlers competing.
The Falcon, Runcorn Canoe Club partnership of Billy Butler and Jon O'Grady were the second crew across the line in the senior doubles class with a time of 14:09:05. Michael Rees-Clark and Edd Dobson of Devizes Canoe Club took third place completing the 108 mile course with a time of 14:49:52.
Starting in Devizes in Wiltshire, paddlers travelled down the Kennet and Avon Canal until it joined the River Thames at Reading, then continued down until the premature stop at Teddington Lock.
Due to high flow conditions for several months in the lead up to the race, junior crews were unable to train on the Thames, this meant their race finished at Reading for safety reasons.
Paddlers for the stages race set off from 7am on Friday morning, with the senior doubles getting underway at 4:30am on Saturday paddling and running continuously throughout the day and night.
This year the race came in at 108 miles long and included 76 locks to portage, as well as arduous paddling, with a considerable amount of running involved too.
Reflecting on the weekend, race director Paul Fielden said:
“The 2024 DW was run with the highest water levels seen for many years. Not only was the river and the lower canal sections flowing very fast, some of the upper canal towpaths were swamped and underwater following torrential downpours in Wiltshire on Maunday Thursday.
“To compound this, the moon rise was very late this year so that the upper Thames was particularly dark for the Senior Doubles.
“In the main, paddlers coped with the challenges this presented and many posted fast times. Unfortunately, the high water levels meant that the tideway section of the river was red flagged and the race was terminated after 108 miles at Teddington.
“The DW would like to thank all the 300 plus volunteers who make this race happen – they are a special part of the DW family.
“We also offer our congratulations to all those paddlers that finished and condolences to those who had to retire early.
“Easter 2025 is in late April. Whilst we can't guarantee it, we are certainly hoping for less water and more sunshine!”
We also caught up DW regular and key Friends of DW member Kat Wilson, to reflect on the race and share a shout out to the community for their fab efforts fundraising this year:
“The beauty of DW is it's one race, anyone can do it if they go and get the training and experience.
“There is something about this race, you don't need to have done it or even want to do it, to be intrigued and have a love for it. There is something so special about it.
“I just think there is no other race with the same level of community spirit and encouragement from all the volunteers, marshalls, fans, supporters and paddlers.”
This was demonstrated this year as the community rallied together to raise over £32,500 to ensure the race could go on. Kat continued: “We started to realise that as a community there was a lot of positive noise around working together to help close the financial gap needed for it to go ahead.
“A few of us got together (Friends of DW ) and decided to help unite forces and I was absolutely mind blown by the response and how everything came together. £32,500 is huge and there were corporate sponsorships and large donations, but the majority were just small donations from members of the community.
“It was really disappointing that mother nature didn't take us to Westminster, but the fact that preparations were in place and ready to go was fantastic to see.”
Kat (Bishops Stortford Canoe Club) teamed up with Cath Drummond of Reading Canoe Club this year to take on the ultra marathon. They completed with a time of 16:54:27.
Fancy giving it a go next year?
As someone who has been taking part in the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Race since her school days, Kat has a wealth of experience in this course and she shares a few tips for those aiming for DW 2025.
Kat's first piece of advice is to join a paddling club and start getting comfortable in the boat you want to race in and then get out there and learn the course.
“Get as much experience on the course as possible, that includes doing canals with portages so you can really understand the fatigue it's going to give you and then get used to those night paddles. In the winter when water levels are higher you're going to want to get out there to experience the course on varying water levels.
“Ultimately you need to make sure you're doing all your training in the safest way possible and that means having the right boat, the right equipment and heading out on the water with experienced paddlers who have completed the course before is very beneficial.”
She adds that support crews are also vital members of this race off the water: “Having a really experienced support crew, that educated themselves on making sure they get to every portage and they give you information for upcoming weirs and manoeuvres makes a massive difference.”
We're keen to continue exploring the world of DW, so keep your eye peeled for more tips and stories. Feel free to get in touch with to share your DW stories too.
Finally…
A huge congratulations to everyone who competed over the Easter weekend. Completing the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Race is an impressive achievement and a fantastic display of the marathon paddling discipline.
A big shout out is also in order to all the volunteers and support crews that helped make the race happen once again this year.
It has been wonderful to see the marathon paddling community get behind and support this iconic race. The official DW event write up can be found here.
Want to find out more about the Devizes to Westminster international canoe race? Head over to their website here for more information. The DW team have also been sharing updates over the weekend on their Facebook and Instagram.
Paddle Daily, an independent paddling blog, has also been following all the DW action in the lead up to the infamous race. Head over to the Paddle Daily website to check out their blogs. They also provided some live stream footage following the senior doubles race. You can watch the full live stream here.