In celebration of Pride Month, British Canoeing is excited to announce the launch of our inaugural Paddling with Pride event in Birmingham this July.
In partnership with Pride House Birmingham in the run up to the 2022 Commonwealth Games, British Canoeing will be welcoming paddlers to take to the water at a come-and-try event at the Roundhouse in Birmingham on Sunday 24 July 2022.
The pilot event will support Pride House’s ambitions to create a safe space and welcoming, inclusive environment for LGBTQ+ communities in sport.
Paddling with Pride aims to be a celebration of inclusion, allyship, as well as all things paddling. It is a continuation of British Canoeing’s commitments to equality, diversity and inclusion under #WePaddleTogether, listening to insight and feedback from a range of communities, creating a positive cultural shift in paddling, and inviting everyone involved to join us on that journey.
Pride House is a welcoming space for LGBTQ+ people and allies during the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. We are delighted to be able to include the Paddling with Pride event in our programming and to support British Canoeing to highlight that paddlesports welcome and celebrate LGBTQ+ people.
– Lou Englefield, Director of Pride Sports and Co-Chair of Pride House International
Whether you have paddled before or are completely new to the water, people of all identities, including allies, are invited to join us on the Birmingham Canal Old Line in the city centre for paddling fun, to find out more about how to get on the water, and meet some of our wonderful club volunteers.
If you were looking for even more reasons to join us on the day, you could be in with the chance of winning your very own rainbow Aquaplanet MAX 10”6 Stand Up Paddleboard if you register a place at the event before Friday 15th July - we’ll be presenting it to the winner on the day!
Flags, facepaint and t-shirts are highly encouraged, as there will also be a Pride “Parade” on the water during the event.
We’re very excited to be working in partnership with Pride House Birmingham on Paddling with Pride. Through our national Inclusion Survey in 2021 it was suggested that we run an event like this, and we saw a really meaningful opportunity to bring it to life. As someone who is part of the community themselves, I’m excited to see this event bring together a diverse community to celebrate together.
– Helena Russo, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead for British Canoeing
British Canoeing’s Inclusion Survey responses show that people who identify as LGBTQ+ often still feel unwelcome in paddling. We heard that people fear being outed or treated poorly on account of their sexuality or gender identity, and that there is still a general perception that paddling is not an activity for LGBTQ+ people, who are not well-represented.
“Our ambition for Paddling with Pride is to better connect with and show allyship to the community through a welcoming and enjoyable paddling experience, and begin to break down and address some of these barriers and perceptions,” added Helena.
“Paddling also goes beyond participating or competing - it’s about our club volunteers, our coaches and leaders, the environmental campaign work we do, and so much more. This event is a platform to open the door to all of the wonderful things paddling can be, and show the importance of representation and acceptance in all of those spaces,” she said.
Location: Hengelo, Netherlands Sales Support Medewerker Het Customer Service Center is verantwoordelijk voor het uitvoeren van verschillende services richting onze klanten were
Location: Hengelo, Netherlands Software Solutions Engineering CANDIDATES THAT WOULD IMPRESS US PROFILE: You are a recent graduate with a Master's degree from an Enginee
Location: Hengelo, Netherlands Software Solutions Engineering CANDIDATES THAT WOULD IMPRESS US PROFILE: You are a recent graduate with a Master's degree from an Enginee
Location: Huizen, Netherlands About us Met 80.000 talenten in 68 landen zijn we een van de grootste hightech-werkgevers op het gebied van safety en security. In Nederland , waar 2...
Location: Huizen, Netherlands About us Thales SIX is onderdeel van Thales Nederland en heeft een leidende positie op het gebied van hoog gekwalificeerde radio- en netwerkcommunica