2025 ICF World Ranking competition draws top athletes to OKC

The 2025 ICF Canoe Slalom World Ranking competition took place March 28-30 at RIVERSPORT’s Whitewater Center, bringing together more than 70 top Olympic hopefuls from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Djibouti, Peru, Slovenia, Venezuela and the United States. Founder of RIVERSPORT Mike Knopp expressed his excitement for the event, highlighting the significance of hosting global events in Oklahoma City. 

“It really underscores that we are defining a true differentiating niche for OKC as being a global hub for water sports in canoe, kayak and rowing,” Knopp said. “This is truly a unique thing in America—to have these kinds of events in a downtown area. It's something that, if you're in OKC, you can really lean into. It changes perceptions globally when you are a continental and global hub for whitewater sports and growing.” 

The 2025 ICF event attracted athletes seeking rankings for the World Championship in Australia, which will be held in OKC in 2026. Athletes participated in canoe slalom—where athletes race through gates for time—and kayak cross—where athletes launch from a ramp high above the water in groups of four and race to the finish line. Athletes competed for medals, ranking points—a key step toward World Championships and Olympic qualification—and for U.S. athletes, a spot on Team USA. 

Knopp noted that the competition not only set the stage for the 2026 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships but also for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles (LA28). 

“It's very unique that we actually can be standing alongside Sydney, a city that hosted the Sydney Olympics. Our venue is very unique in the world,” Knopp said. “This is one of the more modern courses, and it is truly known globally as one of the premier venues of its kind.” 

RIVERSPORT’s evolution has spanned decades. From a barren ditch in the 1990s, it transformed into a river through the MAPS initiative, followed by the construction of several boathouses and the establishment of an Olympic training site. These developments led to RIVERSPORT being selected as a host site for LA28. 

“We'll forever be known as an Olympic venue in an Olympic city. The legacy of that is incredible in terms of how it'll forever redefine OKC,” Knopp said. “While we never thought we would actually get to host the Olympic Games, we did want to build things to an Olympic standard because it doesn't get any better than that. That can create opportunity, and in this case, it created the most amazing opportunity we could have imagined.”

Kayak cross, a new discipline introduced at the Paris Olympics, was recently named a breakout sport by Sports Illustrated. RIVERSPORT will continue to showcase this event for the next three and a half years leading up to LA28, helping to develop the discipline. 

As RIVERSPORT continues to showcase kayak cross, it will also host the 2026 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships, scheduled for July 2026, another major step in solidifying its role in the world of water sports.