Canoeing Popularity Has Risen to Two Million
18th March 2003The figure has been issued (today) by the British Canoe Union to mark the visit of Rt. Hon. Alun Michael, Minister for Rural Affairs and Urban Quality for Life, to the International Canoe Exhibition at the NEC,Birmingham, on 14th March.
"The research has thrown up some startling results," said British Canoe Union Chief Executive Paul Owen." Previous figures had put UK participation at the much lower level of around 0.5 million participants in any one year. This will now help us to shape our policies more effectively, especially in the areas of coaching, member services and support and especially where access to water is concerned. It is a tremendous building block for the future."
In addition the research showed that the annual spend (in 2000) by the British Canoe Union's registered members alone was up to £7 million. With membership now standing at a record level of 42,000 in December 2002 this would safely indicate that canoeing makes an important and worthwhile contribution to the rural economy.
If the participation levels indicated by this research are expanded to reflect the total participation levels of up to 2 million ( a figure, further supported by the recent RYA Omnibus survey) the sport can make claim to significant contributions to the economy particularly with regard to expenditure on fuel, accommodation and food in rural areas .The BCU ,have therefore taken this to indicate that the sport's impact could be as much as £700 million in the UK.