Official communication has not even started yet, we can already welcome Spain, Norway, Cyprus, Romania and Slovakia among the participating countries, as they once again put their trust in the Hungarian event based on last year’s experiences and word-of-mouth references. They consider it important to have a competition where they can bring the youngest ones and give them the opportunity to experience international competition, regardless of their level of achievement. This competition is about friendship and international relations, regardless of the fact that the most successful competitors can collect extremely beautiful, unique medals of international standard.
Most important, however, as Thomas Wichmann himself, the namesake, once said:
“The sport of kayaking and canoeing builds an indestructible bridge from heart to heart over nations”
Thomas was a good friend. A man who embraced the world. He built extraordinary friendships with former competitors such as Romanian Ivan Patzaichin and Croatian Matija Ljubek. Thomas was fulfilled through sport, his heart was shaped by his respect and love for his sports opponents into an all-embracing, all-loving heart.
We believe that international friendships open up opportunities and build bridges between fellow sportsmen representing many nationalities. International friendships make us rethink the concept of national borders, and instead of distancing ourselves, they encourage us all to love, accept and respect each other. There are so many different cultural values that are not familiar to us from all parts of Europe and the world. Let’s take a step and reach out to each other, because sport connects us. The sport of kayaking and canoeing builds a bridge whose material cannot be touched by iron or fire. Its color is white and it is called: peace and selfless love.
