Kimberley Woods


Kimberley Woods is a British slalom canoeist who has competed in C1, K1 and KX1 at the international level since 2011. A six time world and eight time European champion, she won the bronze medal in both the [Canoeing at the 2024 Canoe Slalom World Cup|2024 Summer Olympics – Women's slalom K-1|K1 event] and the first ever women's kayak-cross (KX1) event in Paris at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
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Life

Personal life

Woods was born in 1995, one of four children living in Rugby. Aged four she watched her aunt Diane, who was a silver medallist at the 1994 World Junior canoeing Championships, and was helped by her grandparents to get her own canoe. She was bullied as a child because of her physique and used canoeing as an escape from this.
She won three medals at the world junior competitions but was forced to stop canoeing because of an injury and turned to self-harming.
In 2013 she attended Rugby College and later, the University of Hertfordshire.
Woods has been open about how she has struggled with mental health issues throughout her life. On two occasions she has checked into a private mental health hospital, and has stated how she experienced suicidal thoughts.

Canoeing

Woods has won 15 medals at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships with six golds, four silvers and five bronzes.
She also won 16 medals at the European Championships, including a silver in the [Canoe slalom at the 2023 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships – Women's kayak cross|2023 European Games – Women's C1 team|C1 team] event at the 2023 European Games in Kraków.
Woods won the overall World Cup title in K1 and C1 in 2025 and in Kayak cross in 2023 and 2024.
She qualified to represent Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo in the Women's K1 event where she finished in 10th place.
In 2024 she returned to Olympic kayak competition, in Paris winning two bronze medals, one in the K1 event and another one in kayak cross.

World Cup individual podiums

SeasonDateVenuePositionEvent
201322 June 2013Cardiff1stC1
201329 June 2013Augsburg3rdC1
201527 June 2015Kraków2ndC1
20158 August 2015La Seu d'Urgell3rdC1
20164 June 2016Ivrea3rdC1
201610 September 2016Tacen1stC1
201717 June 2017Prague1stC1
201718 June 2017Prague2ndK1
201916 June 2019Lee Valley2ndC1
20198 September 2019Prague2ndC1
202226 June 2022Tacen1stKayak cross
202311 June 2023Prague1stKayak cross
20231 September 2023La Seu d'Urgell3rdC1
20233 September 2023La Seu d'Urgell2ndKayak cross
20238 October 2023Vaires-sur-Marne2ndKayak cross
202416 June 2024Kraków3rdKayak cross
202414 September 2024Ivrea2ndC1
202415 September 2024Ivrea2ndKayak cross
202421 September 2024La Seu d'Urgell3rdC1
202422 September 2024La Seu d'Urgell2ndKayak cross
202529 August 2025Tacen1stK1
202530 August 2025Tacen3rdC1
20255 September 2025Augsburg1stK1
20256 September 2025Augsburg1stC1