After the PaddleExpo in Nuremberg, originally planned for Sept. 25 to 27, had to be canceled this year due to the corona pandemic, a posting on the exhibition website now announced that “PaddleExpo is history, the 2019 edition was the final PaddleExpo”.”
The first trade show for paddlers took place in 2003 as ”Kanumesse” in a hotel, then moved to a sports gym, and in 2005, due to rapid growth, finally moved to NürnbergMesse. In 2008, the first SUPs were presented, after which the Kanumesse was joined by a second show, SUPExpo. After the two events were merged in 2011 under the common name PaddleExpo, the show developed into the most important paddle sport trade event worldwide. It was fully booked every year. According to the website, it had hardly any operating costs, so this year’s cancellation due to Covid-19 was no problem. “However, after 17 years, this forced pause provided the perfect opportunity for the PaddleExpo series to come to an end, leaving the industry enough time to shape its future,” says the online statement of the organizer, Horst Fürsattel.
Whether the paddle scene will have a new home in Germany or Europe in the near future is currently unclear.
Photo: © PADDLEexpo / peter-lintner.de
