Salmon Leap canoeists deliver again in 2025 International Liffey Descent

Salmon Leap Canoe Club competitors again made their presence felt at the recent 2025 International Liffey Descent, with the Leixlip club accounting for two of the top three finishers in the Men’s K1 division, while three of their paddlers helped make up the top two boats in the Open K2 class.

With water levels particularly low for this year’s competition, it added to the technical difficulty for all participants, but Salmon Leap’s Finn Harris and 2025 ICF Canoe Marathon World Championship K2 bronze medallist, Adrián Boros from Hungary took it in their stride as they powered their way to the Open K2 crown, fending off the challenge of Harris’ clubmates, Peter Egan and Sean Butterly in second and British crew, Jonathan O’Grady and Jason Graham in third.

For Harris, who had previously enjoyed success on the Liffey as a junior and finished among the top ten in the full international, this was his biggest feat in Ireland’s blue ribbon canoe event.

Delighted with the success of his partnership with Boros in this year’s Descent, Harris said “It was such a good feeling getting the win and there was a really good atmosphere at the finish as well.

“We got off well at the start. The water level was very low, so it was quite hard to get over a lot of the weirs.

“We were just trying to avoid breaking the boat, while trying to find the fastest line through all the rapids and stuff, but it worked well. The boat ran well. I did a bit of preparation before, looking at the weirs, so I suppose that helped as well.

“I went working for a year and stopped the training quite a bit, but then when I started back in college, this was a good goal to set to keep motivated,” he explained.

Harris’ Salmon Leap clubmates, Egan and Butterly demonstrated incredible tenacity to battle their way to K2 silver.

Given that they were a heavier crew, the low water levels were even more of a concern for them, and for good reason, as their boat sustained severe damage on both the Wrens Nest and Chapelizod weirs.

Yet they managed to, not only remain afloat, but also chase down O’Grady and Graham, overtaking them towards the finish for the runners-up spot.

Recalling their tumultuous campaign, Egan said “Being a heavier crew, it was more difficult for us to navigate and pick our spots, and we got stuck on one or two places where we had to get out and run around.

“The portage at the dam, that's a compulsory portage, but, altogether, we got out about another five or six times in total to get over shallow shady waters.

“At Wren’s Nest, we shot the V section of the weir there, but the boat took the brunt of the landing at the bottom of the weir and there was quite a big thud and a crunch.

“We knew the seams had been damaged there at that stage and we were terribly nervous that we had done detrimental damage, but the boat was strong enough to keep us going and we ploughed on.

“We shot Palmerstown Weir with no problems, but then we came down to Chapelizod and shot down a very dry slide section where there was a big rock at the bottom under the water which impacted right where we had damaged our boat on Wren’s nest.

“The boat actually sank with us in it, so we got out, emptied the boat. It did leak water, but not excessively and so we got back in, put our head down and just went for it.

“We caught the British crew and we dropped them with about 60 or 70 meters to go and we just went from there all the way down the flat section of Islandbridge until we got to the Garda Boat Club. We were absolutely delighted to make the finish line above the water,” he laughed.

For Butterly, that achievement capped a tremendous season of international racing this year that featured gold at both the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships and Olympic Hopes Regatta.

And for Egan, it was another trip to the Liffey Descent podium, the Salmon Leap competitor having previously won the K2 title three times and the K1 class once.

Another of the Leixlip club’s hugely decorated figures in Liffey Descent competition, Tom Brennan was back to land his fifth K1 title.

Navigating the difficult low-water conditions, he successfully negotiated a tough challenge from Senan Forristal, who finished runner-up, with Brennan’s clubmate, Dermot Hudson taking third.

“It was hard going overall” admitted Brennan.

“The river level was very low, so I was quite conscious throughout the race to mind my pace and not go too hard.

“But the race went well overall. I got a smooth start, but both myself and Senan Forristal got stuck on Vanessa Weir and lost about a minute at that stage.

“He [Forristal] went off on his own for about the next six or seven kilometres, but I managed to make up ground on him at the portage and caught him by Lucan weir. The rest of the way we kind of shared the work together.

“I wouldn't have a great aerobic base for long races, but it came down to a sprint finish which I won in the end,” he said.

There were, meanwhile, other strong performances from Salmon Leap’s Sean Noud (first in Junior K1), Dylan Clarke and Orla Glennon (first in K2 Adult & Junior) and Luca Clancy & Lucy Cullen (third in Mixed K2).

Malcolm Banks was first across the line in the Over 49 K1, while Declan Halton teamed up with Brett Irvine from Richmond Kayak Club (UK) to take the Men's Over 39 K2 title.

Gary Mawer combined with Steve Baker from Richmond (UK) to win the Men's Over 49 K2, while Kate McCarthy finished runner-up in the Women's K1 division.