By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Oct 2: The sixth edition of the Megha Kayak Fest 2023 (MKF), an international white water kayaking competition, will be held on the Umtrew River near Umtham Village, in Ri Bhoi from October 12-14.
The festival will comprise of two events – Downriver Sprint (DR), and the Indian National Championship for Canoe Slalom Cross (CSLX), which is open for all international paddlers to compete in.
The technical organisers White-Water Village Umtham, run by Ian and Sheela Vincent family, said that with a huge amount of prize money at stake (approx. 20,000 USD in total) and a large number of white water kayakers from around the world are participating, the festival promises to be an extremely exciting adventure sports extravaganza.
It was also informed that this year the organisers have collaborated with the Indian Kayaking and Canoeing Association (IKCA), a registered body with International Canoe Federation (ICF) and the recognized body for Kayaking, White-water Rafting, and Slalom events in India.
The competition will feature events for professional and intermediate kayakers and with a special category of prizes for the best paddlers of the Indian subcontinent.
The aim of this Festival is to promote adventure tourism and help establish Meghalaya as one of the major water sports destinations in the world. Meghalaya, one of the wettest regions in the world and due to its unique natural geography, contains a large number of rivers seeped in folklore that are ideal for white-water kayaking and exploration for sports and recreation.
The Megha Kayak Fest has become the biggest adventure sports festival in India since 2016, and has become a very popular destination for kayakers from all over the world, helped by the publication of the Meghalaya Rivers Guidebook as well as many spectacular video reels on YouTube and social media. Support from the Government of Meghalaya, Meghalaya Tourism Department and the DSYA will help in making the kayak festival an even greater success this year.
The organisers hoped that the people of Meghalaya will wholeheartedly support the event and help in making it a grand success.