Hello and welcome to my website! My name is Michal Smolen and I am a whitewater slalom kayaker. I am on the US Junior National Team and a member of the Nantahala Racing Club in North Carolina. I have been a competitive kayaker for over five years now and I have represented the United States in world-class races. I currently live and Charlotte, NC and train at the US National Whitewater Center, a US Olympic Training Site. I am orginally from Poland and moved to the United States at the age of 10. My first steps took place when I was around 12 years old and soon after that kayking became a huge part of my life. From the start I have been coached by Rafal Smolen, a former kayaker on the National Team in Poland and also my father. Both of my parents were professional athletes in their past and I am carrying on the legacy. I hope to achieve many feats in my career such as racing at the Olympic Games in 2012, World Championships, and World Cups. Last year has been the most succesful for me as I raced at the Junior World Championships in France and finshed 4th overall. This results, of course, would not have been possible without the hard training, long preperation, and continous support from my sponsors. I am always on a very busy schedule but I always have time to hear from people who have any questions about what I do so shoot my way any questions you might have.

Cheers,