Banned Team GB hopeful puts spotlight on elite sport funding
Kurts Adams Rozentals - excluded from his sport for two years after posting an 'explicit' video on Instagram - says the bigger issue's around money
An up-and-coming athlete who's been excluded from his sport is speaking out about the decision, saying it was an uphill battle to raise enough cash to fund his elite career.
He's criticising the ruling, despite the governing body saying one of his public posts brought canoeing into 'serious disrepute'.
The Team GB hopeful says there's a bigger financial issue at play in the world of professional competition - and he's taken to social media to help him continue his dream.
On October 31, Kurts Adams Rozentals was slammed by a disciplinary panel with a two-year suspension after he admitted to posting an 'explicit' video on Instagram - and misleading the press about the reasons for his initial suspension back in April.
The man, who lived in Staffordshire for a number of years, recently took to creating content on an adult platform to support his Olympic dream, and insisted his 'edgy' public video, which was taken down, wasn't of an explicit nature, calling the whole case 'very extreme'.
But the ruling means he's ruled-out of competing for Team GB at the next Olympics, after being deselected for Paddle UK's world-class programme for future stars.
He says all of this 'probably wouldn't have happened' if he'd been funded 'properly'.
'It was tough, growing up'
Speaking with Hits Radio Pride, the Olympic hopeful explained how his sporting dream had been burning bright since an early age - but times had always been tough for the sportsman.
It all started when he moved from Latvia to the UK in 2009, when he and his brother joined his Mum in Great Haywood.
He said: "As a family, we started at rock bottom. Mum started working at the local strawberry farms, and eventually got into a better job, and it was then, for the first time in our lives, we went from a place to worrying about rent, to now having food on our table - but we weren't living a comfortable life, by any means.
"My Mum always knew that my sporting dreams had always been there. In Latvia, I spent all of my childhood outside... It was the competitive aspect of sport which was the thing I really always loved.
"Then, in around 2010, I went to a free scuba diving taster session with two other kids from the local canoe club, which is how actually my career in the sport got going.
"I got really sucked in to the sport.
"My Mum very quickly ran out of her savings account buying the equipment and ferrying me everywhere, and did whatever it takes to get me to where I wanted to be.
"She always trusted her gut with these things, so when I made the GB team and first medal in 2021, that was the first time we had something to show for all the years of sacrifice. All the bailiffs knocking on our door.
"It was tough, growing up, but we did whatever it takes."
'I fell out of love with the sport'
Fast-forward to 2025, and after he joined the British programme, that's when Kurts Adams Rozentals said things started to get real.
He added: "I'd like to say, I'm very grateful to Paddle UK for the opportunities they gave me. It was my breakthrough moment four years ago that I actually started earning money through this sport, and that was such a great opportunity.
"However, with the cost of living crisis, I feel that the governing body, and UK Sport, haven't really done anything to address the fact that it's still so difficult to make ends meet as an athlete, unless you had some kind of external financial backing.
"It got to a point where I felt I had to find money from somewhere or else I'd just have to say goodbye to this dream... literally everything I've been working so hard towards, for all of these years.
"I started hustling at an Amazon warehouse, then went onto freelance editing work... OF for me, genuinely was the last port of call.
"I really fell out of love with canoeing, training and racing at the end of 2024, because I was so premeditated with thinking about money, about how I was going to pay the next month's rent, so I committed to a date in January.
"It was January 10th, 2025 that I got started on that site - and the rest... well, I'm not going to go into that!
"But, what I can say, is that it was so sad to see younger athletes who had lots of potential because they, a bit like me, just weren't in the financial position to support doing what they loved."
'My blinders were on'
So, what does the future look like for prospective sportsmen and women wanting to make it in the elite world?
Kurts Adams says it's a tough question to answer.
"The money could be spent much better," he said.
"It's such a tough one to answer! I'm not much a policy-maker, but I know just how much work all these athletes put into doing what they do.
"When the team go on team trips, we get the best of everything - but, in my opinion, that cash could be spent a lot more sensibly.
"I'm not asking them to change, though, but if your goal is to aspire to be a professional athlete, there's just so much more to think about than you might realise."
And despite the ruling, does he regret making the public post, described by the governing body as 'explicit'?
That's also complicated.
He added: "I know the state of mind I was in at the time.
"It was the first time in my life where I knew exactly what I had to do to improve my financial situation, and all it took was making crazy videos which got attention on social media.
"I had the blinders on me, almost.
"All I was thinking about was the next crazy video which was going to get attention.
"If you knew where I come from, and you've walked a mile in my shoes, you'd understand the position I was in.
"Yes it was close to the bone, but I don't think it should have got me banned."
The fall of the Olympic dream
In the conclusion of the case on October 31, the governing body confirmed - in line with their Athlete Disciplinary Policy - Kurts Adams Rozentals had been de-selected from the World Class Programme and issued with a two year suspension, back dated to the time of the offence.
The decision was issued by a disciplinary panel following an independent investigation led by Sport Integrity and a disciplinary hearing.
The panel found:
- The athlete admitted posting an explicit video on their public Instagram profile which was subsequently removed given its explicit nature
- The athlete had intentionally misinformed the press that his suspension was related to his OnlyFans social media account
The breaches of the Athlete Code of Conduct and Performance Athlete Agreement amounted to gross misconduct invoking the following clauses under 8.6 of the Athlete Disciplinary Policy:
- Deliberate actions or omissions that bring Paddle UK's name into serious disrepute
- Indecent, offensive or immoral behaviour
- Offensive use of social media
Committed to 'a safe and open environment for all'
Paddle UK say they are committed to ensuring a safe and open environment for all, and action under the Athlete Disciplinary Policy is taken where necessary and proportionate.
Paddle UK and all other funded sports receive public backing via the National Lottery and government, that is distributed by UK Sport.
Athletes are awarded Athlete Performance Awards, which is a contribution to their living and sporting costs and is tax-free.
Other activities including training time at venues, competition, preparation camps, travel, logistics and support services are all centrally paid for.
There are different levels of funding aligned to bandings set by UK Sport, based on performance criteria for which athletes are selected.
You can read the full statement made by Paddle UK on the conclusion of the panel last month on their website.
You can read more about how sport is funded here, and more on the Increased Athlete Performance Award budget over at UK Sport.
We offered Paddle UK, UK Sport and the British Elite Athletes Association for an interview, but these were declined.