Linus Widmer

Linus Widmer grew up just north of the Alps around Zurich, Switzerland. His parents introduced him to kayaking at the age of ten when they themselves started open canoeing in preparation for some multiday lake trips in Sweden. Paddling flatwater slalom courses in downtown Zurich did not appeal to him, however, and after a quick break in paddling, Linus realized two years later that his passion lay with whitewater kayaking instead. The stunning Rhine Gorge on the northern side of the Swiss Alps became his home most weekends, where he’d paddle as much this sporadic style allowed. Thoroughly unmotivated in Swiss high school at the time, his coach, Franziska Biechler, suggested applying to World Class Academy, where he’d be able to push himself further in kayaking while still finishing his education.

In 2019 Linus started attending World Class Academy as a Sophomore. The school offered a perfect mix of high-quality education as well as pushing his kayaking skills to new levels. Soon he decided that instead of returning to his old high school, he would finish his remaining time at high school with World Class Academy. In the spring of 2022, he graduated in the school’s home grounds of Southern Washington. That same year World Class’s principal, Capo Rettig, and its Program Director, Kalob Grady, offered Linus a spot as an intern at the school. He is working as a teacher’s assistant in Media, Pre-Calculus, and AP Physics 1. He will also be following his second passion – photography – by working on several media projects for the school. Linus is currently in the application process towards several Canadian Universities and hopes to start his undergraduate degree in Physics at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada in the autumn of 2023.