On May 2 – 5, the Extreme Kayaking European Cup will be held for the first time in Georgia, opened by the Bzhuzha Race.

The Extreme Kayaking International Championship – Bzhuzha Race (www.bzhuzharace.com) has been taking place in Shemokmedi village, Guria, on the River Bzhuzha, since 2016, and this year the championship officially received the status of Extreme Kayaking European Cup (EKEC) membership.

The EKEC includes five championships which, apart from Georgia, will be hosted by four European countries: France, Italy, Norway and the Czech Republic. The Extreme Kayaking International Championship – Bzhuzha Race brings together 100 of the world’s finest kayakers from nine countries from such strong teams as: Adidas Outdoor, ExoKayak, Red Bull International, S2S Pro Team and ZetKayaks. This year, for the first time, Georgian athletes will also take part in the championship.

The Bzhuzha Race was created on the initiative of the National Georgian Kayaking Federation, local government, National Tourism Administration and with the support of other local and foreign sponsors. Even in the first year of its foundation, 70 sportsmen from various countries participated in the championship. In recent years, the high-standard organization of the event, the positive feedback from visitors and participants, the widespread captivating photo-video material on social media, the unique technical characteristics of the river “Bzhuzha” and the numerous impressive publications in Kayak Session Magazine inspired the European sporting circles to grant the Bzhuzha Race the status of official European championship.