On the churning waters of the American River, a raft surges through the rapids. Paddles rise and fall as the California Poppies — the only all-female U-19 rafting team in Tahoe — train for their biggest test yet: the 2025 World Rafting Championship in Malaysia.

Part of the United States Rafting Association, the team has spent the season training relentlessly on the American River, preparing for the world stage this December.

The California Poppies — Annika Pekarek, Faith Anderson, Lilian Goddard, Addie Old and Anna Hawley — are students at Truckee High School and North Tahoe High School.

“I’ve been rafting since I was five,” said Old. “I went on rafting trips with my dad from a very young age — he was a ‘Raft Dad.'”

All five girls were raised in rafting families; some are children of former river guides and others are relatives of past champions. Coach Aaron Tippett recruited the team strategically, ensuring every member brought experience on the water.

“It can be hard to recruit youth,” Tippett said. “It’s a very grassroots sport, and parents who aren’t familiar with whitewater rafting don’t always understand what it is.”

While Tahoe is best known for producing world-class skiers and snowboarders, Tippett hopes to draw more attention to its growing tradition of elite rafters.

In 2022, former members of the California Poppies became the first U.S. U-19 team to compete at the International Rafting Federation World Championship. This past weekend, the current Poppies carried that legacy even further, winning first place at Nationals and securing their spot at the IRF 2026 World Championships.

Having already qualified for the IRF 2025 World Championship in Malaysia this December, the team is set for back-to-back trips to compete among the world’s best.

The 2025 World Championships will feature four events — R4 Sprint, Head-to-Head, Slalom and Downriver — held on Malaysia’s Kampar and Selangor rivers. For the Poppies, it will mean facing unfamiliar waters and entirely new terrain.

“If we’re going to make it through the bigger rapids and move the boat as a unit, we all have to share one mind,” Anderson said.

Though the team admits to being nervous about competing across the world, they said their trust in one another is what carries them forward.

“We decided these are our girls,” Anderson said. “We have to support each other.”

The team has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the costs associated with the trip.