Paddle Australia: Paddle Australia shortlisted for Sport Positive Awards 2026
Paddle Australia has been shortlisted in the Transformative Award category at the global Sport Positive Awards 2026, recognising the organisation’s work embedding sustainability into the heart of Australian paddle sports.
Paddle Australia is one of 80 organisations and individuals from around the world shortlisted across twelve categories in this year’s awards.
Paddle Australia’s transformation began with a strategic decision. In April 2025 the organisation launched Paddle Forward 32, its Strategic Plan for 2025–2032, placing environmental, social and economic sustainability at the heart of a national sport for the first time through a dedicated Safety, Environment and Sustainability principle spanning all five strategic pillars. Under the leadership of the Paddle Australia Board and CEO Kim Crane, the plan is transforming the sport into a lifestyle movement.
The vision had been building since June 2023, when the NSW Government announced $3.1 million in venue upgrades for Penrith Whitewater Stadium and Paddle Australia’s Host Organising Committee was formally established to bid for and deliver a major international event on home soil – the 2025 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships Sydney in September 2025.
Rather than treat the Championships as a stand-alone sporting event, Paddle Australia used it as the delivery vehicle for Paddle Forward 32. As Head of the Organising Committee Richard Fox put it, the Championships “served as a launch pad for the Paddle Forward 32 strategy.” A highly experienced dedicated Legacy Impact Team were embedded into event governance from the outset.
The event delivered a live demonstration of the strategy in action:
100% renewable-matched venue electricity, secured through a GreenPower sponsorship – only the third major Australian sporting event to reach this benchmark, after the MCG and the 2024 Australian Open
A carbon-offset partnership with the Tasmanian Environmental Market and Carbon Neutral, offsetting 23 tCO2eq from unavoidable diesel generator use – with diesel consumption coming in 60% below forecast – funding reforestation through the Yarra Yarra Biodiversity Corridor and a safe-water and gender-equity program in Uganda
A nine-stream waste program that diverted 73% of waste from landfill, saving around 50m³
8,643 single-use plastic bottles avoided through free water stations, and 8,000 drink containers recycled through Return & Earn, raising $600 for the Mulgoa Landcare Group’s platypus conservation work
Independent research from Griffith University, spanning pre-, during- and post-event surveys, found 61% of attendees left the event more aware of sustainability, 43% intended to adopt more sustainable behaviours, and 91% appreciated the initiatives on display – with reusable bottle uptake reaching 81.4%, well above the 69% predicted. The Championships also marked the first time an event of its kind calculated a Social Return on Investment, conservatively estimating that paddling saves the Australian community around $93 million annually in productivity, mental and physical health benefits.
The Championships also delivered significant reach for that message: 92.07 million international media contacts through ICF broadcast partners, with all six competition days broadcast internationally, and 1.2 million domestic broadcast viewers on the Nine Network contributing to 43 million cumulative domestic audience reach.
Paddle Australia CEO Kim Crane said the shortlisting reflected the speed and credibility with which the sport had turned strategy into measurable action.
“Being shortlisted for this global Sport Positive Award is a strong signal that our approach to sustainability is being noticed on the world stage and that is an opportunity to acknowledge the expertise and work of our passionate staff and paddle community,” Crane said.
“When we launched Paddle Forward 32, we committed to making sustainability core business, not a side project. Delivering the 2025 ICF Slalom World Championships in Sydney was a perfect catalyst to elevate our vision on that commitment.
“Having it independently verified by Griffith University, shows what’s possible when a sport moves quickly from intent to impact. We’re already applying what we learned to how we plan for all our pre legacy opportunities leading into Brisbane 2032, including how we contribute to the leadership, design and build of sustainable venues and infrastructure for the future,” she said.
The Championships’ outcomes are already informing how Paddle Australia and its government partners approach the design of sustainable sporting infrastructure. Insights from delivering a renewable-powered, low-waste event at Penrith Whitewater Stadium are now feeding into venue and energy planning ahead of Brisbane 2032, reinforcing sustainability as a core design principle for future paddling venues rather than a retrofit.
Paddle Australia moved from strategic intent to verified environmental impact within eighteen months, setting a new benchmark for Australian sport.
Sport Positive Awards 2026 is a global industry program celebrating the people and organisations enabling sustainable business, climate action, biodiversity and environmental justice in and around sport. An independent faculty of global judges will decide the winners, who will be revealed at the Sport Positive Summit on 6 October 2026.
“This shortlist shows how sports organisations and individuals continue to drive critical progress on sustainability, resilience and climate action,” said Sport Positive founder Claire Poole at the Sport Positive Awards 2026 shortlist announcement.
“It has never made more sense, and it has never been more urgent, to take bold steps to protect the future of sport – through the ecosystems, organisations and communities that support and sustain it. We are honoured to platform the people and programmes at the heart of that effort.”
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