So it's that exciting time of the week again! lets see which one of our CCSU Leaders is President of the Week...

Daniel Carey - Kayaking

I wasn’t your typical kid at school, my priorities weren’t really sport.  I never found it appealing to be involved in PE and I never really enjoyed traditional sports that were given as options in primary and secondary schools.

Saying that, one thing that always caught my attention was water sport! It seemed to always be the thing I would gravitate towards, be it swimming, polo, or anything that involved getting wet, I never really minded!

Kayaking was something I did not try until I was in double digits. I understood how the paddle worked and that I was in control of the boat as long as I didn’t panic.

But it wasn’t until I started at university, and was approached by my friend Tom about the possibility of starting a club for kayaking that I really thought about taking it seriously as a hobby.

Since 2014 we have accomplished far more as a committee than I thought possible and we are still growing! Gaining funding to get our training sessions was no small task, Water sport is often overlooked as a legitimate sport. But there is so much diversity and so much to learn! In 2 years I have become a much better paddler, a coach and my passion has grown I’ve learnt techniques I’ve only ever seen be performed by athletes in the Olympics like rolling after capsize. I have a true hunger to pass that information on to newer generations of students as an alternative from the normal sport offerings of large establishments.

2015 was our first Canoe Polo match against Kent. We trained pretty hard and we were really surprised to have beaten Kent universities team, despite their years of experience and much more established club.  I can’t wait to see where this club will lead. And will continue to provide support to anyone who needs it even after I finish at CCCU.