EVESHAM teenager Mike Dickinson secured support to compete in the European and World Canoe Slalom Under 23 Championships.

Dickinson, 17, has been selected to represent Great Britain in German city Hagen next month and in Bratislava recently.

He reached the world kayak (K1) men’s junior semi-finals in Slovakia but paid for a 50-second penalty in being ranked 38th before he completed an eventful team run despite flipping upside down.

Prince Henry’s High School pupil Dickinson said: “The semi-final started off very well. I was extremely fast down the course until gate 15 and was in the lead by one-and-a-half seconds.

“But as I came into the gate the water pushed me away and only some of my head went through the gate so I therefore was deemed to have missed it and a 50-second penalty was added onto my time.

“It was also one of the few gates that due to the water you are unable to go back round for once you have committed to entering it. I was extremely upset.

“However, it was my first world championships and to get into the semi-finals was a fantastic achievement.

“I now know I have the speed to get to the finals so this is a big confidence boost for the future.”

In the team run all three junior kayak men went down the course together.

Dickinson added: “It was eventful. We were given bib 13 which some say is unlucky. It certainly was not lucky for me.

“We started off well keeping tight together in the run only for me to have a disaster at gate five.

“As I pushed off the wall with my paddle it got stuck in a crack and flipped me upside down.

“The paddle dislodged but I was upside down in the stopper and it took about 15 seconds to get upright.

“Most people were surprised I managed to stay in my boat and not swim.

“I came up with very little breath left and still managed to finish the course despite having no energy left.”

Evesham Paddle Monsters Canoe and Kayak Club member Dickinson now heads to European Cup events before the championships.

Karndean Designflooring are helping him to cover costs such as carbon fibre paddles, transportation and race clothing.

Dickinson started kayaking as physical therapy tafter overcoming two open-heart surgeries to correct life-threatening congenital defects.

He travelled to Nottingham three times each week to train and spent weekends leading up to the selection races at the 2012 Olympic course in London.