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Estonian paddler breaks into world top five: “A major step forward for me”
🇪🇪 Estonia /Sports

Estonian paddler breaks into world top five: “A major step forward for me”

From Postimees · () Estonian

Translated from Estonian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement Outcome reported
  • Elizaveta Fedorova finished fifth in the women’s 1,000-meter single kayak at the world championships in Poznań, improving from 13th place in 2025.
  • She also placed 13th in the 500 meters and 5,000 meters, moving up 10 places in the Olympic-distance event.
  • Fred Kahu competed at his first senior world championships across four distances.

Elizaveta Fedorova’s fifth-place finish in the 1,000-meter single kayak became Estonia’s standout result at the world championships in Poznań. A year after finishing 13th at the 2025 world championships in Milan, she reached the top five on the same distance.

I am very satisfied with the competition and my results. Honestly, before the competition I expected the results might be worse because it has been a season with many starts, so I am especially happy that I managed to perform so well.

— Elizaveta FedorovaShe assessed her performance at the world championships.

Fedorova also improved sharply in the 500 meters, an event included in the program for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. She rose from 23rd place last year to 13th this year, a 10-place improvement. She finished 13th in the 5,000 meters as well.

“I am very satisfied with the competition and my results,” Fedorova said in a press release. She had expected weaker results after a season with many starts, making the performances especially pleasing. “Compared with last year, this is a major step forward for me. I am very proud of these results, and they give me even more motivation to keep working and become stronger.”

Compared with last year, this is a major step forward for me. I am very proud of these results, and they give me even more motivation to keep working and become stronger.

— Elizaveta FedorovaShe described her improvement in the 500- and 1,000-meter events.

Fred Kahu made his senior world championship debut in Poznań, competing in the 200, 500, 1,000 and 5,000 meters. He said the event showed him exactly where he needed to aim and provided lessons for future competitions. His most emotional race was the 5,000 meters, where a strong start raised hopes of a good result before his boat broke. “Not every day can you race alongside Olympic medalists,” Kahu said.

Not every day can you race alongside Olympic medalists.

— Fred KahuHe reflected on his first senior world championships and the 5,000-meter race.
About this summary

Originally published by Postimees in Estonian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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