Cape Ability Outrigger Ohana Led Effort to Make Va’a a Paralympic Sport

Cape Ability Outrigger Ohana, a long-time Move United member organization, is shuttering its doors after 15 years of service in the western New York region and beyond. The organization has made a significant impact in the adaptive sports movement, specifically in regards to the development and growth of para va’a, or outrigger canoes.

Va’a boats are attributed to Polynesian culture and have been in existence for thousands of years. This discipline will make its augural appearance at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

In 1997, Jan Whitaker, who founded CAOO, envisioned va’a as a Paralympic sport and started a movement here in the United States. She wrote an article, “Outrigger Canoeing for the Physically (Dis)abled” that was published in Steve West’s Kanu Culture, Planet Outigger’s Handbook (Volume 5, 1999). “The article introduced the concept to outrigger canoe clubs and paddlers around the world; it includes photos and information about the 1998 Rochester River Challenge that included a team of paddlers with physical disabilities in our sprint races,” Whitaker said.

For a history of para’ va’a in the United States, check out the timeline below.

Time Line for Para Va’a in United States

1997 – Jan Whitaker first envisioned outrigger canoeing (va’a) in Paralympic Games after observing the successful and joyous first paddling experience of a 9 year-old girl with mobility impairment in her summer outrigger canoe program in Rochester, New York.

1998 – Jan collaborated with Rochester Rehabilitation Center staff to begin an adaptive va’a program.

1998 – 2017 Paddlers with physical disabilities participated in the Rochester River Challenge Outrigger Canoe Sprint Races in Rochester, NY. Jan Whitaker was the Race Director.

1999 – Jan introduced adaptive outrigger canoeing to the outrigger world in her article, “Outrigger Canoeing for the Physically (Dis)abled” in Kanu Culture, Planet Outrigger’s Handbook (Vol. 5).

1999+ – Jan’s teams of paddlers with physical disabilities participate in outrigger canoe sprint races in Vermont, Massachusetts, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Georgia to promote the Paralympic vision

2001 – Jan presents outrigger canoeing for paddlers with physical disabilities at Staffordshire University in England and also to the British Canoe Union in London

2001 – The United States Canoe Association accepted Jan Whitaker’s proposal to offer Exhibition Outrigger Canoe Sprint Races for paddlers with physical disabilities at the USCA National Championships starting with USCA National Championships in Gainesville, Georgia. USCA created a new position, Adaptive Paddling Chairman and appointed Jan to that position.

2002 – After speaking with Jan Whitaker, Aka Hemmings started Hawaii’s adaptive outrigger canoe paddling program through his organization, Project Pure Light.

2003/2004  – Disabled Sports USA (now Move United) supports Jan’s vision of va’a in Paralympic Games; Jan and physical therapist Garry Gellert present adaptive outrigger canoeing at DS/USA clinic in Long Beach, Ca.

2004 – USA Canoe/Kayak includes Exhibition Outrigger Canoe Sprint Races for Paddlers with Physical Disabilities and Paddlers with Intellectual Disabilities at 2004 Olympic Trials in Oakland, Ca. DSUSA Executive Director Kirk Bauer participated in the races and supported the vision of va’a in Paralympic Games

2004 – As USCA’s Adaptive Paddling Chairman, Jan requests that the International Va’a Federation include an Exhibition Race for Paddlers with Physical Disabilities in the 2004 Hilo World Sprints. Race organizer, John Kekua agrees to include one V-12 exhibition races as a non-medal event. Jan organizes the first United States Team that competed in IVF World Sprints.

2004 – Jan becomes a member of the International Canoe Federation’s newly formed Adaptive Paddling Committee

2005 – United States Canoe Association offers National Championship Outrigger Canoe Sprint Races for Paddlers with Physical Disabilities as full medal events

2006 – Jan organizes East Coast Outrigger Canoe Racing Association Adaptive Paddling Team that         competed in IVF World Sprints in New Zealand in V6 and V1 events.

2008 – Jan presents “Outrigger Canoeing, a Sport for Paddlers in All Major Disability groups involved in Paralympic Sport” to the International Canoe Federation at the international PaddleAll Conference in Montreal, Canada organized by John Edwards. The purpose of the conference was to discuss ways to include paddlers with disabilities in International Canoe Federation events; an ICF official attended the conference. The ICF invited paddlers with physical disabilities to compete in the European Championship Sprint races in Milan that year.

2008 – Jan selects and coaches the first USA Canoe/Kayak PaddleAll C-2 and K1-W team that competed    in the first European Championship Sprint Races in Milano, Italy that included PaddleAll events

2008-2015 Jan serves as Para va’a coach for USA Canoe/Kayak and American Canoe Association teams competing in International Canoe Federation Sprint World Championships. Va’a paddler Anja Pierce earns a gold medal in 2015.

2008 – Jan develops a basic classification system for the International Va’a Federation and organizes an East Coast Outrigger Canoe Racing Association Adaptive Paddling Team that competes in 2008 IVF Sprint races in Sacramento, California. The races are full medal events for the first time.

2021:  Two va’a paddlers from the United States will compete in Tokyo Paralympic Games, Blake Haxton in the VL2 men’s class and Kaitlyn Verfuerth in the women’s VL2 class.