India’s women’s canoe slalom team scripted history at the 2025 Asian Canoe Slalom Championships in Guizhou, China, clinching a remarkable silver medal in the team event.
The trio of Pallavi Jagtap, Shikha Chauhan, and Rina Sen braved challenging waters and intense competition from Asia’s finest to deliver one of the most significant results in Indian canoeing’s history. This silver isn’t just a medal it represents the arrival of Indian athletes on the Asian stage in one of the most technically demanding aquatic disciplines, canoe slalom.
The championships, held from August 14–17, 2025, attracted nearly 100 athletes and coaches from 10 countries, including canoeing powerhouses like China, Japan, and South Korea. Against such established rivals, India’s performance stood out as a breakthrough moment. In the women’s canoe team event, Jagtap, Chauhan, and Sen combined skill with strategy, negotiating the demanding whitewater course with minimal errors.
Coaches praised their “seamless coordination, efficient gate management, and outstanding technical balance”, qualities crucial in a sport where every touch of a gate adds five seconds and a missed gate incurs a massive 50-second penalty. While China took the gold, India’s silver finish achieved ahead of other strong contenders was celebrated as a landmark result, signaling the country’s rapid progress in a sport that has often flown under the radar domestically.
The Medalists: Stories of Grit and Growth
Pallavi Jagtap : The Teen Prodigy
At just 17, Pallavi Jagtap is already being hailed as the future of Indian canoe slalom. Trained at the Madhya Pradesh State Water Sports Academy, she has a string of youth medals to her name. Earlier in 2025, at the Junior and U23 Asian Slalom Championships in Thailand, she bagged silver in the C-1 Junior Women’s individual and another silver in the K-1 Junior Team, while also contributing to a bronze in the C-1 U23 Women’s Team.
Her rapid rise from junior success to a senior Asian Championship medal reflects both her immense potential and the effectiveness of India’s structured youth training programs. Pallavi herself has been vocal about the need for artificial slalom courses in India, pointing out that training on natural rivers alone limits preparation for the technical demands of elite international competitions.
Shikha Chauhan : The Versatile Competitor
At 22, Shikha Chauhan is an experienced paddler with achievements across multiple canoe disciplines. Known for her success in Canoe Polo as well as slalom, she has dominated domestic competitions, winning the ‘Rapid Rani’ title at the Malabar River Festival and first prize in the Extreme Slalom Pro category at Chalipuzha.
Her previous international success includes a bronze in the C-1 U23 Women’s Team event alongside Jagtap earlier in 2025. In Guizhou, her maturity and composure added depth to the trio’s performance, making her an integral part of the medal-winning run.
Rina Sen : The Trailblazer
The most inspirational of the three is perhaps Rina Sen, a 26-year-old from Khargone, Madhya Pradesh. Introduced to canoeing through the Narmada River, she discovered her passion in 2019 and pursued the sport despite family skepticism. During the pandemic, she famously trained at home, waking at 4 a.m. to build strength and focus on mental visualization.
Her breakthrough came with a national gold in 2022, which cemented her status as a rising star. In 2024, Rina created history by becoming the first Indian woman recruited into the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) through canoe slalom, combining her athletic career with a secure professional path. Her story of resilience and pioneering spirit now inspires the next generation of female athletes.
All three athletes are products of the Madhya Pradesh State Water Sports Academy, a Bhopal-based institution that has become the epicenter of Indian canoeing. Since its establishment in 2007, the academy has produced 28 international medalists and 69 national medalists, with its athletes representing India in 37 international competitions. Its facilities include fitness centers, physio rooms, training pools, and hostels, but its most unique asset is the natural slalom course at Maheshwar on the Narmada River. This natural training environment has been vital in nurturing athletes like Rina, Pallavi, and Shikha. However, coaches and athletes alike acknowledge the next step: building artificial slalom courses to match international standards.
The academy’s success proves that with focused regional investment and structured training, India can excel in Olympic water sports that have traditionally been dominated by Europe and East Asia.
The Championship in Context
India’s silver came in a fiercely contested championship. In other women’s events:
- Kazakhstan’s Yekaterina Tarantseva won silver in the K-1 individual, while Anastassiya Ananyeva secured bronze in C-1.
- Chinese Taipei’s women’s kayak team (led by Olympic medalist Chang Chu-han) finished second behind China in the kayak team event.
That India, without a long tradition in canoe slalom, could secure a podium finish alongside such names underscores the significance of this medal. It places the country firmly on the Asian canoeing map.
Despite the breakthrough, challenges remain. The biggest bottleneck is the lack of artificial slalom courses in India. Nearly all major international events from the Olympics to World Cups are conducted on artificial courses with controlled currents and technical gates. Training only on natural rivers means Indian athletes often face a steep adaptation curve in global events. Athletes like Pallavi Jagtap have openly stressed this gap.
Encouragingly, the Indian Kayaking and Canoeing Association (IKCA) has pledged to address this. Under President Prashant Kushwaha and High-Performance Director Dr. Sumant Kulshreshtha, the IKCA has laid out a vision for world-class infrastructure, explicitly committing to the development of India’s first artificial slalom track. If realized, this could be a game-changer, aligning India’s preparation with global standards and paving the way for Olympic-level success.
India’s silver medal in Guizhou provides both momentum and motivation for the future. With the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya on the horizon, the trio of Jagtap, Chauhan, and Sen could well spearhead India’s challenge for a maiden canoe slalom medal at the continental multi-sport stage.
Beyond that, with investment in infrastructure and consistent exposure, Indian canoeists can aspire to compete strongly in World Championships and even aim for Olympic qualification in the long run.
The silver medal at the 2025 Asian Canoe Slalom Championships is more than a sporting achievement it is a watershed moment for Indian aquatic sports. It highlights the rise of young talents like Pallavi Jagtap, the resilience of pioneers like Rina Sen, and the steadiness of versatile performers like Shikha Chauhan.
It also validates the work of institutions like the Madhya Pradesh State Water Sports Academy while underlining the urgent need for world-class infrastructure. For Indian canoe slalom, this silver is not the finish line it is the starting point of a new era. With the right support, the day may not be far when India’s athletes are not just challenging for continental medals but also making waves on the world’s biggest stages.
