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Friday, 29 March 2024

USA Kayakers continue their training despite Olympic announcement

Duration: 02:10s 0 shares 1 views

USA Kayakers continue their training despite Olympic announcement
USA Kayakers continue their training despite Olympic announcement

USA Kayakers react to the news of the Tokyo 2020 Games postponement, while they continue training.

SHOWS: BETHESDA, MARYLAND, UNITED STATES (RECENT) (MUST CREDIT ERIC FRIEDENSON - ACCESS ALL) 1.

KAYAKERS IN ACTION AT THE GREAT FALLS BETHESDA, MARYLAND, UNITED STATES.

(MARCH 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 2.

VARIOUS OF USA CANOE AND KAYAK TEAM MEMBER TYLER UTHUS TRAINING 3.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) USA CANOE AND KAYAK TEAM MEMBER, TYLER UTHUS, SAYING: "I mean I feel for everybody.

Everybody has been putting their heart into this for the past year and a lot of people's dreams are coming to fruition and this is going to be their chance and now they don't know.

It's a little more uncertain.

Kid of getting the rug swept out from beneath them.

But, so I feel for those guys, but I think everybody understands.

This is just so much bigger than any of us or our sport and I don't think anyone is holding the IOC or anyone else accountable for postponement." 4.

VARIOUS TEAM MEMBER TRAINING 5.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) USA CANOE AND KAYAK COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER, AARON MANN, SAYING: "So usually in an Olympic year we'll get more funding especially for athletes that have performed well and look like their medal contenders, with them being postponed and going into next year, I'm not sure what's going to end up happening because our Olympic Committee like every other national Olympic Committee gets a lot of their funding off the games.

So, they'll have to determine their budgets and figure out what they're able to put out and hopefully we'll be in a position where we won't have to worry about that." 6.

USA CANOE AND KAYAK TEAM MEMBER JOSHUA JOSEPH TRAINING 7.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) USA CANOE AND KAYAK TEAM MEMBER, JOSHUA JOSEPH, SAYING "I think like the dream never dies though you have another year to push and another year to get better and go even harder at it." 8.

WIDE SHOT OF TEAM TRAINING STORY: While congress wrestled with a massive fiscal bailout package on Tuesday (March 24), a few miles north of the capitol building, members of the USA Canoe and Kayak team were coming to terms with the news that Tokyo 2020 has been postponed.

The Great Falls area is a hotbed of US paddling and the National team was out on the water despite the IOC's announcement.

Tyler Uthus, the USA's number two ranked kayaker said he felt the IOC had no choice but to put off the games until next year but he understands how some athletes may feel they have had the rug pulled out from under them.

Arron Mann, the teams communications manager, said there was uncertainty now about the team's financial support from the USOC (United States Olympic Committee) who count on revenue from the games to support the various federations under their umbrella.

Joshua Joseph, who started kayaking at age six, and has won two ICF Junior World Championships, looked ahead to 2021 and told Reuters "the dream never dies" saying it was just another year to push ahead and get better.

The USA Olympic trials were to be held this spring in Oklahoma City.

(Production: Peter Bullock)

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