RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesIn the best case scenario for Lachlan and Kaylen Bassett, one of them will be competing in the 2028 Olympics , the other will be supporting.
That's because the Australian brothers compete in the same category in canoe slalom, and only one can be at the Olympic starting line.
Kaylen, 29, and Lachlan, 26, have been competing in canoe slalom for over a decade. They started through school, a program where they went up to Sydney from their hometown Melbourne. Since then, it's been a passion for the entire family. While their father couldn't make the trip across the pacific for the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships in Oklahoma City, their mom was out there as a judge.
And the Bassett's case is not the only one. Not even in Australia.
Paddle Australia also features Olympic medalist-sisters Jessica and Noemie Fox.
More: OKC passes test of hosting ICF canoe slalom world championships. Next up? 2028 Olympics
Eva and Žiga Hočevar of Slovenia follow their dad Simon's footsteps. In the French team, Marjorie, Anatole and Doriane share the passion for the sport.
Brothers Jean Pierre and Yves Bourhis represent Senegal, while Isabella and Marcella Altman represent the USA.
"I think our sport is a real family sport," Kaylen said. "Our mom is here judging and you see so many parents coaching their kids and things like that. It's quite cool in that aspect.
"I think perhaps we're in the minority of siblings in the sport where we got into it ourselves, not through our parents or anything like that. It's pretty cool because you have someone, yes, while we're obviously competing against each other, you have someone that can really relate to you. You can share the experiences, you can cheer for each other, you mourn through each other at times."
Jean-Pierre and Yves Bourhis also didn't have professional paddlers in their family, but a canoe club in their hometown in northwestern France pulled them into the sport.
Jean-Pierre was 10 and Yves was 6 when they first started paddling.
Their father knew the brothers loved water and were looking for some activity in the water. It could have been swimming or any other sport, but they started paddling in the local club. Eventually, they started competing and never looked back.
Jean-Pierre and Yves represented their parents' home country of Senegal in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
"My father is here (in Oklahoma City) for the race," Yves said. "He's following us to take videos because we don't have a coach. He always follows everything. He was at the Olympic Games with my sister and my brother. He's really getting involved. Even when we were kids, he was judging all the races."
More: How athletes battled the heat at ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The two brothers don't live in the same city. Still, they help each other navigate the sport.
"It could be to give some advice, it would be to watch, sometimes if you have a rest day and the other doesn't, then you can have some feedback," Jean-Pierre said. "Most of the time we train on our own, but when we are in competition, it could happen that we train together."
Because canoe slalom is a time trial sport, it's mostly each paddler against the water, rather than against each other. So while there is a natural rivalry, there is, above all, extreme support between these siblings.
"To have (Isabella) as a sister but also as a teammate competing here is a really special, full circle moment," Marcella Altman said.
Marcella and her younger sister, Isabella, compete in kayak cross. Their cousin, Étienne Daille, represented France at the 2012 Olympic Games.
"I know it's a dream of both of ours," Marcella said. "We grew up paddling together, she was my first training partner."
For the Bassett and the Bourhis brothers, as well as the Altman sisters, they just want to see their sibling performing to the best of their ability, and hopefully that can guarantee both siblings a spot in the podium.
"I think it's really cool that we just want the best run between us to win," Lachlan Bassett said. "I think everyone in our sport is really unique, where everyone's really close and friendly, and I think that's because we want, at the end of the day, for the best run to win. It does get a bit tense perhaps when it's like national team selections and things like that, where we're fighting for a spot between us, but other than that, why can't we both be on the podium like this?"
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: How canoe slalom has become family affair for 2028 Olympics hopefuls
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