Country: Germany | Discipline: Sprint Canoe (C1 1000m) | Olympics: London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020

G'Power paddle: BIONIC (no longer made) | Olympic medals: 3 Gold, 1 Bronze

Sebastian Brendel was the dominant force in sprint kano C1 1000m. He won Olympic gold at London 2012 and defended the title at Rio 2016, becoming the first paddler to win consecutive C1 1000m golds in 64 years. He raced on the G'Power BIONIC paddle, a model G'Power no longer makes. Brendel ended his career in 2025.

Olympic Record

Games Event Result
Tokyo 2020 C2 1000m Bronze
Rio 2016 C2 1000m Gold (with Jan Vandrey)
Rio 2016 C1 1000m Gold (defended title)
London 2012 C1 1000m Gold

World Championship Titles

Brendel won 13 World Championship gold medals between 2013 and 2022 in C1, C2 and C4 events, ten of them in C1 1000 m and C1 5000 m. He competed for KC Potsdam and the German national team.

Why G'Power

Sprint kano C1 paddles require maximum power transfer through a single-blade stroke. The BIONIC paddel used monocoque construction, with blad and shaft as one continuous carbon piece. No joint meant no flex point. The 30 mm shaft gave the stiffness that high-stroke-rate C1 1000m technique demands.

An Olympic C1 1000 m final lasts about four minutes. The weight and stiffness of the BIONIC paddel counted in every stroke of that race.

Equipment Specs

  • Paddle: G'Power BIONIC (no longer made), monocoque construction, 100% carbon
  • Shaft diameter: 30 mm (sprint standard)
  • Construction: Monocoque (blade + shaft = single piece, no joint)
  • Blade type: Sprint kano single blad with concave shaping

Current G'Power models for this discipline are in the pagaj til fladvand range. Read more about how to choose a sprint paddel and compare all G'Power models in our carbon fiber paddel comparison.

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