Posted on: Friday, December 19, 2003

Lokahi club to compete in Brazil

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

You can now add Brazil to the ever-growing list of canoe countries.

The Lokahi Canoe Club of Honolulu will represent Hawai'i in Rio Va'a 2003, an event that is being hyped as the largest canoe race in Latin America.

The races — for one-person canoes and traditional six-person outrigger canoes — are scheduled for tomorrow at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"This is the second year of the race, and we're the first team from Hawai'i to make it down there," said Lokahi's Rudy Briones. "We have no idea what to expect because all the other teams will be new to us. We just want to do well, especially because we're representing Hawai'i."

Approximately 40 teams from around the world are expected to participate.

According to Nicolas Bourlon, president of the Rio Va'a Hui Hoe club, teams from France, Canada, Argentina, Tahiti and California, as well as Brazil, are expected to participate.

Briones said he attended the race last year as an individual, and paddled with a Brazilian crew.

"You can see it's a growing sport," Briones said. "And they're actually pretty good paddlers. They learn fast."

The six paddlers in the Lokahi crew are Briones, Mark Inouye, David Shamblin, Clayton Kaichi, John Kaaialii and Keone Pasion. They will compete in the open men's division.

Brazilian officials were so excited upon receiving Lokahi's entry form that they named a new canoe "Lokahi," and the Hawai'i paddlers will get to use it tomorrow.

Bourlon said some of the Brazilian paddlers have participated in the Queen Lili'uokalani Long Distance Canoe Races on the Big Island, but their ultimate goal is to enter the Moloka'i races.

"We now have four clubs in Rio (de Janeiro) and are in the process of creating a federation," Bourlon said. "When we traveled to Hawai'i, we were well-received, and now we have a chance to receive the (Lokahi) paddlers."

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.