Godden heads to Bulgaria

Following her recent participation at the South African Canoeing Sprint Championships, Alexa Godden was selected to represent the country at the U23 World Championships to be held in Bulgaria in July.

She has previously taken part in three world championships and this year, the paddler said, it was harder to qualify as not only were the trials stricter with times, there were also a lot of competitive times. As such, when received she good news that she had been selected, it felt a lot bigger to her. Her hope is to do a lot better this year than in previous years. “I am not so worried about my time, as it’s an outdoor sport and the wind along other elements can affect it.”

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Godden started paddling when she was only eight years old after she saw her parents take part in the sport. But, it was only when she left school that she started to take the sport seriously. As a young paddler she never considered the sport would take her to various parts of the world. To her, its an added bonus that all these races and the various training camps have taken her to all these places which adds to her experience of the sport.

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While at the SA sprints she qualified in the K1 event but also took part in the K2 and mixed doubles races. Godden credits the members of Dabs for her having reached her current level. “There are so many people who have helped me, some even just come to train with me to help me achieve my goals. So being part of this club has played a huge role in me getting to the place I have got to now.”

Her ultimate goal would be to take part in the Olympics, though she does say it is going to be a lot of work to get there, “But, hopefully 2028 I’ll be there,” she said cheekily.

The Dabs paddler encourages her peers to get into a sport like canoeing, as through it, especially within the K1 races, you will be able to see your personal improvement and how you push yourself both physically and mentally, something she really appreciates being able to do. The sport has greatly shaped her personal life. “Though I may look confident to others, I struggle to believe in myself and this high level racing really pushes me to believe that I can ultimately do anything I put my mind to.” A facet which has gone on to lend itself in many other areas in her life too.

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