Help Jonas Ecker with his Kayaking Journey

My name is Jonas Ecker and I am a member of the United States Canoe Sprint National Team in the kayak discipline.

With my outstanding top finishes in all three distances (MK1 1000m, MK1 500m, MK1 200m) at the 2022 US National Team Selection Regatta, I qualified for the following events: The 2022 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships (Halifax, Canada), the 2022 Canoe Sprint Pan-American Championships (Halifax, Canada), and the 2022 ICF Junior and U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships (Szeged, Hungary).

I ask for your support to help me offset and supplement the cost of both training and competing as a full-time student at the University of Washington studying Marine Biology and Chemistry. Prior to my first international competition in 2018 I conducted a similar fundraising effort and was lucky enough to stretch the funds over three years of international competition. Although I am working whenever I can to assist in paying for the required training camps and travel for these competitions, the total costs still outweigh the amount I am able to work. Any contribution is greatly appreciated and will be put towards my international paddling career (See below for more information).

You can keep up with my training and competitions online via Instagram (www.instagram.com/jonasecker__/) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/Jonas-Ecker-239684176941031).

My immense gratitude in advance,

Jonas Ecker

If you are a brand interested in sponsoring me directly please reach out via the contact tab or my listed social media.

Additional Information:

For those of you who don’t know me, I began paddling in the summer of 2013 at age 10 with the Bellingham Canoe Kayak Sprint Team (bckst.org). From that point on I knew I had found the sport for me. First competing at local Sound Rowers (www.soundrowers.org) events and then expanding to regional and national regattas I was propelled forward by the support of the local paddling community and my desire to improve. Since then, I have competed at five US National Championships Regattas and one National Team Selection Regatta. Over these six national level events I have collected twelve national titles, fully sweeping the Open MK1 events at both the 2021 US National Championships and 2022 US National Team Selections.

In addition to my domestic performance, I began competing internationally in 2018 at the Olympic Hopes Regatta (Akin to the U17 World Championships) and again in 2019 where I placed 3rd in the U17 MK1 500m. After a forced intermission due to the COVID-19 Pandemic I reentered the international scene in 2021 competing at the ICF Junior and U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships where I placed 16th in the U23 MK1 1000m (at age 18).

So, what’s next? As mentioned previously, I will be competing at the 2022 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, 2022 Canoe Sprint Pan-American Championships, and 2022 ICF Junior and U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships. Each of these events are equally important stepping stones in my paddling progression but each have their specific purpose.

The U23 World Championships along with the Pan-American Championships are my primary events this year. The U23 World Championships will give me an opportunity to compete against the best in the world in my age division as well as attempt to improve upon my world ranking of 16th in the U23 MK1 1000m from 2021. The Pan-American Championship will give me an opportunity to qualify for the 2023 Pan-American Games. Although the Senior World Championships are not my primary event this year, they are just as important. My goal is to gain top level race experience before competing at the 2023 event where Olympic qualifications are up for grabs. At all of these events I will compete in the MK1 1000m, MK2 1000m, and MK1 5000m.

Overall, I am immensely grateful to the expansive support of the paddling community, whether you choose to donate or not. I would not be where I am today without you, my family, my friends, my coaches, and my sponsors (Vaikobi and Ocean Paddle Sports). I look forward to sharing this adventure with you all!