WORCESTER duo Stuart West and Jonny Tye have been picked for the Marathon World Championships in Rome this month.

Their Great Britain call-up follows the national competition in Norwich when experienced international West and talented teenager Tye were among the paddlers to impress.

They will race in the K2 together in Italy from September 21 until 23 with Tye making his debut at a senior world championships.

West, chairman of Worcester Canoe Club, admitted: “It is only just starting to sink in. The hardest race of my life is now less than four weeks away. I can’t wait.”

Tye added: “I’m really pleased to have been selected for my first senior world championships in the K2 with Stuart.”

Worcester’s Simon Williams, Rob Griffiths and Russell Woolley have been in Nottingham training in K2 and K4 crew boats ahead of international races in Belgium this month.

Meanwhile, city paddlers competed in the Hereford hasler race which had been previously cancelled due to heavy rain and flooding.

K1 Division Two: 1 West, 2 Williams; Division Three: 4 Woolley, 5 Griffiths; Division Four: 2 Mike Gandy; Division Six: 6 Reuben Knight, 7 Jayne Moran; Division Seven: 3 Nikki Westgate, 8 Paul Gregory, 10 Janet Parker; Division Nine: 2 Caitlin Andrews; Under 12s: 3 Allaby Carpenter; Under 10s: 1 Riley Carpenter, 2 Harry Baylis; K2 Division Four: 1 Mick Moran and Andrew Holmes, 2 Christopher Skellern and James Parker, 3 Simon Davies and Matthew Thornton Brown, 5 Andrew Nevitt and Julian Gilbert; Division Five: 1 Gary Leeke and Liam Grover; Division Seven: 2 Dave Walsh and Richard Drew.