World rafting championships paddle into Asia

Around 700 competitors have descended on the Indonesian island of Java for this year's World Rafting Championship, showcasing the best of the extreme sport in a region where its popularity is on the rise.

Teams of rafters, almost all non-professional, slammed their paddles into fast-flowing rapids to battle through the Citarik River, surging past jungle-clad mountains.

Spectators stood on the shore amid palm trees, cheering as the six-person teams raced through furious white water, navigating skillfully past rocks and through slalom polls.

It is the first time the championship, which has been running in one form or another for over 25 years, has been held in Asia.

"Definitely rafting is becoming more popular in Asia," said Joe Willie Jones, president of the International Rafting Federation (IRF), which organised the event with the Indonesian federation.

"Compared to a lot of the world, it's a relatively new activity."

While rafting is little known in Asia compared to other parts of the world, it is the Japanese men who are the only full-time, professional team. 

The Brazilian men also receive strong financial support and are among the best, while teams from eastern Europe perform well.

Indonesia was named host after organisers put forward a competitive bid and the selecting committee decided the archipelago was suitably exotic, with its thousands of islands, vast tracts of jungle, and steaming volcanoes.

Rafting chiefs are always keen to host the championship in a far-flung part of the world, to satisfy the adventurous spirits of those competing.

"We like to go to unusual, exotic locations because it always makes the event interesting for the competitors," said Jones.

Photo Caption: The Argentina team compete during the men's master event at the World Rafting Championship on the Citarik River in Sukabumi in western Java island on December 7, 2015 (AFP Photo/Bay Ismoyo)