On one hand where Rajasthan Kayaking & Canoeing Association and Pacific University are jointly preparing for the milestone event of National Kayaking Canoeing Championship 2012, on the other hand the participating teams have started to show up in city to clash for the title of national champion.

Today, around 17 States’ and independent department teams have reached Udaipur for the upcoming tournament, including Kerala, Jharkhand, Uttarkhand, MP, CRPF, Indian Navel, Armed Forces etc. whereas more than 25 teams are expected for the event.

Rajasthan team is making its debut in the game and is ready to face some of the finest teams of India as well as the world. A cut-throat competition is foreseen, as most of the participating teams have played in international championships, while some of them have played at the national level.

One among the teams arrived in the city is the team of Kerala with 37 players in a composition of 16 girls and 21 boys. Among the 16 girls, 12 have played in international tournaments are having experience of 3 years in the sport.

Shilpa Mole, Shiba Mole A T, Libi Mole K A of team Kerala are the gold medalists of National Championship 2011 and third position holders at the international level. Among boys of Kerala team, Piyush K Baroi is the gold medalist of national tournament held at Bangalore earlier this year. Other experts of Kerala team include, Betty Joseph, Bincy Mol B in the senior category and Nithys T A and Anusha Biju in juniors group.

According to P. D. Ashok Kumar, Senior Coach from Kerala said, “Our team is practicing from past 6 months with a focused goal of winning both national and international tournaments”.

Team of Kerala has 2 coaches and 2 team managers, for both boys and girls, whereas Madhya Pradesh team is consisted of around 90 members, including team officials and coaches. As per the rules of the sport, all the participating teams have to register with IKCA for the competition.