Lucy Crino Wins Gold and Silver at U.S. Nationals for Canoe Slalom
- Sofia Liebman
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
When Wall’s senior, Lucy Crino woke up on October 15th, she didn’t know that by the end of the week she would become a national champion.
Crino is well known across the U.S. as the “glitter girl.” At every race, she brings biodegradable glitter, calling it “like glitter war paint.” She also shares it with her teammates, and with athletes around the world.
Canoe slalom, commonly referred to as slalom, is a competitive sport where athletes maneuver a whitewater course in a canoe or kayak, navigating through a series of hanging gates as fast as possible.
For anyone interested in picking up the sport, Crino says, “I think slalom is for anyone. There’s no one who can’t do the sport. There’s no body type that’s ideal. There are people who are small, people who are big, people who are tall, people who are short doing the sport. There is no limiting factor in slalom, and I think that’s a really great thing. You just need to be confident. It can be a little bit scary, but you really just need to have confidence and you’ll be fine.”
Crino herself started slalom in the summer of 2020. Her mom wanted her to get outside, but because of the pandemic, all the summer camps were closed except for one, which offered slalom. Crino said, “I initially didn't think I would like it very much, but I’ve ended up becoming really committed, and I spend like two to three, sometimes four hours a day training.” She is currently competing on the U.S. national junior team. She is ranked 18th in the world at the junior level.
Crino said some of the biggest challenges for her are balancing both school and slalom. She explained, “A lot of people who are also on the team with me don’t necessarily attend in-person school. They attend online schools or they're homeschooled. So it’s really hard to be able to put the time and effort I need into the sport and get the same results out, but when I do, it’s very rewarding.”
Before races, Crino prepares by listening to music during her warm up. After a race, she celebrates by going home and heading to school the next day. “You know, it’s just one of those things. I’ve got to keep moving on. I go to practice the next day. I feel really good. Nationals was a really great win, it’s not my big goal right now, but it made me feel a lot stronger working toward my next goal.”
In October, at the United States National Championships, Lucy won a gold and silver medal in Kayak Cross Individual and Kayak Slalom respectively. While it was an incredible achievement, Crino isn’t done yet. She has a bigger goal ahead, making it to finals at the Junior World Championships in Krakow, Poland for her final year as an under 18. But that’s not the end Crino ultimately hopes to make the senior team and compete at the World Championships in Oklahoma City.
Congratulations to Lucy on her win, and good luck in Poland!
