A team of students from the Footprint Scientific Circle at the Krakow University of Technology has made a splash at the BetonKanoRace 2023 competition in Delft, the Netherlands, impressing spectators and judges alike with their innovative concrete kayaks. The students, who were the only team from Poland at the international event, won two gold medals in the mixed teams category and a third place finish in the women’s doubles category. They were awarded concrete trophies for their achievements.
The team spent a year preparing for the competition, working on developing unique concrete mixes and optimizing the shape of the kayaks with the help of experts in boatbuilding, Krzysztof and Grzegorz Polaczyk. They also underwent rigorous training in preparation for the race.
The students utilized the experience gained from their participation in last year’s competition in Germany, as well as the invaluable support of scientific mentors from the Cracow University of Technology, including Prof. Izabela Hager, Dr. Katarzyna Mróz, Dr. Mateusz Sitarz, Dr. hab. Tomasz Tracz, and Dr. hab. Tomasz Zdeba, scientists from the Faculty of Civil Engineering. With their assistance, the team created a high-value concrete composite with reactive powder concrete, which they used to build ultralight boats with thin walls and high water-tightness.
The Concrete Canoe Race 2023 is an annual competition for students of architecture, engineering, and construction from across Europe. It challenges teams to design, build, and race kayaks made entirely of concrete. Hundreds of students from European universities work for a year to construct the fastest, most innovative, and eco-friendly kayak, competing against each other in a unique race that showcases the potential of concrete beyond its traditional use in construction.
This year’s competition was organized by the Technical University of Delft, and the students from the Cracow University of Technology were among the highlights of the event, drawing attention for their exceptional achievement in the field of concrete boat-building. The success of the Footprint Scientific Circle at the Concrete Canoe Race 2023 is a testament to the ingenuity and creativity of Polish engineering students and the country’s leading position in the field of innovation and design.