More than 300 paddlers will take part in the San Silvestre Tournament at the Club Nàutic Portitxol

The Club Nàutic Portitxol (CNP) is preparing to host the San Silvestre Tournament on the 16th of December, a canoeing competition to be held in waters close to the club, in the bay of Palma, as part of the School Games League, and in which more than 300 paddlers of all categories, from children to veterans, are expected to take part.

The event will begin at 8 am and will end after 2 pm. Athletes from different clubs and with sea kayak, canoe and stillwater kayak boats are expected to take part. There will be different courses programmed for pre-benjamins, Benjamins, Alevines, Infants and Popular Category, Cadets, Juveniles, Under-23, Seniors and Veterans. After the competition, the corresponding prize-giving ceremony will be held, followed by a hot chocolate and ensaimadas for all the participants and their companions. It will be an intergenerational social event, with paddlers from 10 to over 65 years old, from different yacht clubs in Mallorca.

In addition, the organizers are offering the possibility for non-federated athletes to participate, who will take part in the popular category, in double kayak, for which they can register until Wednesday 13 December at 2 p.m. Registrations will be made directly on the Federació Balear de Piragüisme website www.piraguabalear.es.

"Weather permitting, the competition will take place in front of Es Portitxol beach, with a course between the mouth of the club and the islet in front of the beach. The paddlers will have to complete a certain number of laps depending on each category. There will be different distances: 5,000 meters for cadets, juniors, seniors and veterans; 3,000 meters for children, and 1,000 meters for juveniles", explains the coordinator of the CNP's Canoeing Department, Omar Calzón, a prestigious paddler who has been a national coach in this discipline, president of the Alberche Kayak Club (Madrid) and currently holds the title of runner-up in the Spanish surf sky.

The event will bring together respected canoeing figures, starting with Calzón himself. On the part of the CNP, Toni Mikailenko, who came third in the Spanish championship, will also stand out among the champions of the CNP canoeing team. 

The San Silvestre Tournament is part of the club's commitment to water sports and, specifically, to canoeing, a discipline that "brings a lot of discipline and organization to young people. By competing from minute one, you have to make an effort and organize your schedule very well, in order to combine it with the other aspects of your life. Moreover, it is a very complete sport in which a large part of the body's musculature is used, contrary to what many people think. It is also very beneficial in terms of posture", according to Calzón, who is in charge of around twenty paddlers of different ages, from 10 to 37 years old. His right-hand man at the head of the CNP Canoeing Department is Vittorio Mataloni, 24, who, together with Calzón, coaches the team's paddlers. For this purpose, the club has around twenty competition canoes and a perfectly equipped gymnasium.