Salmon Leap canoeists hold their own in European Sprint Championships
Sean Butterly continued his fine form throughout 2026.
Salmon Leap Canoe Club, yet again, saw a number of their members figure among some of the sport’s top emerging internationals when they contested the recent 2026 Junior and U23 Canoe Sprint European Championships in Szeged, Hungary.
Sean Butterly was coming into this competition buoyed by his stunning gold-medal win in the Junior Men’s K1 1000m at the 2026 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Halifax, Canada.
And he delivered another hugely impressive display over that very distance in Hungary to finish fourth in the A Final before he came home fifth in the Junior Men's K1 500m A Final - a division in which he had carded a seventh-place finish in Canada.
Butterly’s Salmon Leap clubmate, Caoilín Caffrey, with whom he had finished fourth in the Junior Mixed 5km Relay at the World Championships, just 0.6 seconds outside of the medals, continued her great run in 2026 with by reaching the B Final in the Junior Women's K1 1000m in which she crossed the line eighth for an overall finish of 17th.
The Celbridge woman, who, earlier this summer, landed her first international medals at the European Canoe Marathon Championships in Romania, also recorded an eighth-place finish in the K1 500m semi-finals in Hungary.
There were more solid results for Salmon Leap’s junior contingent, as Sadb Shannon took ninth in the Junior Women's K1 200m semi-final, while Sean Smyth and Sean Noud teamed up for a sixth-place finish in the B Final of the Junior Men's K2 500m, emerging 15th overall.
In the European Sprint Championship’s Under 23 division, Dáibhí Reynolds also carded a sixth-place finish in the Men's K1 1000m B Final, which earned him 15th place overall.
Carl Harris took ninth in Under 23 Men's K1 200m semi-final before doing likewise when he combined with Reynolds in the Men's K2 500m contest.
Éabha Ní Drisceoil emerged 12th overall from Under 23 Women's K1 200m after she crossed the line sixth in her semi-final, while in the Under 23 Women's K1 1000m, Lucy Cullen completed her semi in ninth for an overall ranking of 15th.
Both Ní Drisceoil and Cullen linked up to contest the Under 23 Women's K2 500m and finished ninth in their heat.
Delighted with the performance of his team in Hungary, Jon Simmons, Head Coach of Salmon Leap Canoe Club, and Canoeing Ireland National Development Coach said “The Junior and Under 23 Canoe Sprint European Championships in Szeged, Hungary, have been a fantastic opportunity for our athletes to showcase their talent, determination, and commitment. Every one of them has done themselves, their club, and their country proud.
“Watching these young athletes grow in confidence, develop their skills, and embrace every challenge has been one of the most rewarding parts of coaching.
“Their work ethic, resilience, and passion for the sport have been outstanding, and they thoroughly deserve everything they have achieved.
“I’m immensely proud of each and every one of them and excited to see where their journey takes them next. Congratulations to the entire team” he added.
Next up for Salmon Leap will be the Olympic Hopes Regatta, taking place in September in Bratislava, Slovakia, where the Leixlip club will field a small team made up of Caoilín Caffrey (Under 15), Emily Donnellan (Under 16) and Under 17 competitors, Sean Noud and Jake Witek.
Following that, the club will turn its attention to the 2026 Canoe Marathon World Championships, taking place in Argentina in October.
Among their contingent of Under 18 competitors taking part in that will be Sean Smyth, Caoilín Caffrey and Sean Butterly, the latter hoping for a repeat of his tremendous gold-medal win in the Junior Men’s K1 Long Course contest at last year’s event in Hungary.
Representing the club and Ireland in the Under 23 class in Argentina will be Paul Donnellan, Dáibhí Reynolds and Lucy Cullen.
