The below list is a compilation of the most successful canoe racers in the Triple crown over the past 27 years of the sport and I thought this would be a good time to reflect on the current status of the sport and talk about some interesting aspects of the sport.
The first thing that jumps out at me when I look at this list is that the top 3 on the list are still the pinnacle of the sport. I also think that although we know Serge Corbin was the greatest canoe racer of all time, Steve Lajoie is also making an impressive case for himself for that title. Steve has not shown any signs of slowing down and will surely be adding to his total in coming years. With the rumors that Serge is ready for racing this year it is an exciting time in the sport when you are looking at the very top.
The next thing I want to recognize is the fact that 11 out of the top 30 have recorded a top 10 finish this past 2018 season and all have the capability of staying in the most elite group of racers in the world. Another amazing thing is that the large majority of all of these racers in the top 30 are still paddling and most at a high level. This is just another testament that canoe racing can be a sport for life as you do not see this type of life long participation in many other sports.
Now lets take those 11 athletes that have a top 10 in the past year from the top 30 of this list and talk about what to expect from them in this upcoming season that is only weeks away now. These athletes are Steve Lajoie, Serge Corbin, Andrew Treibold, Guy Rousseau, Guilliaume Blais, Mike Schlimmer, Ben Schlimmer, Nick Walton, Samuel Frigon, Mike Davis, and Jim Pellerin. At this time there are only 2 of these athletes registered for the General Clinton that being Mike Davis who is partnered with Kyle Stonehouse who has only post 1 top 10 finish in the triple crown and Ben Schlimmer is again paired up with Trevor Lefever. That team has been working hard trying to break through to their first Clinton victory. Steve Lajoie was paddling with Samuel Frigon in Florida and Serge was also spotted in Florida so we can only hope he opts in to battle it out at Cooperstown. I personally haven't heard any news on Guy Rousseau, Guiliaume Blais, Nick Walton, Mike Schlimmer, and Jim Pellerin have partnered up with yet for the Clinton but I'm sure whoever they partner up with will be equally as talented and we will be talking about all of them in the coming months.
I want to thank Ryan Matthews for providing the data for this article and if you have any information on matchups that you have heard for the upcoming season leave a comment below.
You can find the entire list on our racing page at https://www.canoeraceworld.com/racing