Author: Ekaitz Saies
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A Comforting Cinnamon, Banana & Apple Porridge for Training Days
Years ago, when I used to travel to the UK, the porridge I tried in hotels was always bland and boring. However, when I moved here, I started experimenting with simple recipes like this one. Now I love a steaming, gentle porridge in the morning — comforting, filling, and perfect…
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THE CHAMPION’S MINDSET IS OUT!
I’m excited to announce the release of The Champion’s Mindset: The Four Seasons of Mental Preparation — a practical, experience-driven guide to elevating your mental game. This book is the result of more than 20 years spent competing as an elite athlete, coaching at the highest level, and leading performance programmes, combined…
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A sudden realisation connected my family’s story to David Attenborough
More than 80 years ago, a generation of ordinary Britons opened their doors to Basque child refugees. One of them was my grandfather. Standing on the Dorset coast, in front of Old Harry Rocks, where Sir David Attenborough introduced his latest documentary, Ocean, I felt a sudden, deep personal connection…
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A Week in Dorset, an ending on the page – My first book coming soon
I’ve just returned home from a lovely week in Dorset. Days steeped in family, sea breeze, long walks, fresh seafood, and the quiet satisfaction of finishing the second proof of my first book ‘The Champion’s Mindset’. I had promised myself this week to complete it; any longer, and my perfectionism…
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Paddle Games 2025 – taking the sport to where people are
I’m incredibly proud of what we achieved at the Paddle Games last weekend. We took the sport to where people are – instead of asking people to come and watch it. We built a format that put our amazing paddlers at the heart of the action. They are the true…
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When leadership means picking up a paddle
Leadership is not a rank, but acting on what is required in any given moment. It is having skin in the game. As a former international paddler, I could see that the conditions yesterday were not optimal for racing. On Saturday, I spoke to a member of the competition committee…
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The power of positive pressure
Many years ago, my parents gave me a copy of Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs biography as soon as it was released in Spanish. I had been a Mac and Apple user and always loved their products, but didn’t know much about Jobs’ story at the time. That book would shape a great…
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Enjoy the Rocky Path: Lessons from a life in sport
When I stepped away from competitive sport twelve years ago, I was at peace. I had lived a life that many dream of, travelling the world, pushing the limits of my body and mind, competing at the highest level. I had achieved many of the goals I had set as…
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Tradition and identity: where does Canoeing belong?
Yesterday, I found myself at the edge of the Thames in Henley-on-Thames, a curious observer at the Henley Royal Regatta, that gilded stalwart of the British summer season. First held in 1839 (a year after Queen Victoria ascended the throne), the event has become a postcard of old England: rowing…
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Behind the medals: The relentless drive of Saúl Craviotto
On 11 March 2023, I filmed a short video that, to most, might have seemed unremarkable. A few seconds of an athlete catching his breath between training sets. Saúl Craviotto, now the most decorated Olympian in the history of Spanish sport, lying flat on his back beside the water, exhausted,…
EKAITZ SAIES 