Double Olympic medallist Kimberley Woods has revealed how the loss of her grandmother Kathleen inspired her to a World Cup bronze medal this season, with the canoe slalom star now carrying her nan's memory into the 2026 World Championships and the road to LA 2028.
Kimberley Woods' grandmother was always her biggest supporter, and the two-time Olympic medallist is now paddling in her memory this summer. The 30-year-old canoe slalom star's season took an unexpected turn earlier this year when her nan Kathleen passed away during the second World Cup of the season.
Woods flew back to the UK to say her goodbyes before returning to the international scene in Prague to race in her honour. And fuelled by memories of being told to enjoy herself, she bounced back from a rocky start to earn C1 bronze.
"I was looking forward to the World Cups and really nailing back into it, but then life throws a curveball at you and you've got to adapt," she said. "I knew I needed to race, and she wanted me to race, but I needed to go home to say goodbye.
"I went into Saturday feeling like a weight was off my shoulders and that if I raced badly, it didn't matter. She would have wanted me to just be there and enjoy it. That's why I went out to do on those last two days of racing, and I came home with the bronze."
Kathleen and John Woods were a major part of their granddaughter's journey into the canoe, one which has resulted in multiple world and European medals as well as two trips to the podium at Paris 2024.
"She's the reason why I'm in it," she added. "In Prague, it was the last hours and last days of her life, but I just knew that she was there with me racing, and she will be for future races."
Next up for Woods is a trip over the Atlantic as she lines up for the 2026 Canoe Slalom World Championships in Oklahoma City. The first step on the journey to the LA 2028 Olympics, with qualification points now on the line, the event also acts as a testing point for athletes who will race on the very same waters during those Games.
And while Oklahoma is 1,184 miles away from LA, the atmosphere at a recent training camp in April was evidence enough for Woods to know that the Olympic venue will deliver a show in 2028.
"It's rare in the current stage of my career that you get to paddle a new course and a new venue," she said. "It was really cool to go there. The last time I raced in America was in 2012 for my first junior world champs, so I've come a long way since then."
With two World Cup medals to her name already this season, including her first in kayak cross, it is full steam ahead towards the USA for Woods as she looks to add to her remarkable haul of 15 World Championship medals.
"After having a really good end to last year, I just thought, 'I want more gold'," she said. "There are so many opportunities for me to go out there and race the best I can in Oklahoma. That's what keeps me hungry.
"I haven't won an individual world title in slalom. I've come so close a few times with C1 silver at my home world champs in Lee Valley and then K1 silver last year, so I want to tick those off my list."
Paddle UK is the national governing body for canoeing, kayaking and all other paddle sports. For more information, visit paddleuk.org.uk.
