A ROYAL visitor saw the River Tees in all its glory last night at the opening of the World Canoe Marathon championships.

The Princess Royal, patron of the International Canoe Federation, along with hundreds of spectators, watched as the 33 participating nations paraded with their national flags.

The Tees was lit up by fireworks and stiltwalkers gave a colourful theatre show to illustrate the history of the river, with underwater explosions adding to the drama.

Princess Anne arrived at the Tees Barrage, at Stockton, and visited the new White Water cafe, where she was met by the Mayor of Stockton, Councillor Terry Bean, and council and canoeing officials before the cere-mony.

As guest of honour, she gave a speech before going to a viewing gallery on the barrage to watch the celebrations.

Local arts company Bravura then acted out the Tees' history, with pyrotechnic displays and a fire-breathing "dragon" along the white-water course. Performers wore head-dresses to take on the guise of fish and other sea creatures.

About 30 drummers and 35 stiltwalkers provided the 20-minute display, with a massive fireworks display rounding off the evening.

The canoe marathon championships will run today and tomorrow, with the junior single world championships at 9.30am and the senior single world championships at 1.15pm to-day. The junior and senior double championships will take place at the same times tomorrow, with kayak regattas in the afternoon and the medal ceremony at 6pm tomorrow.

Canoe marathons consist of races down the river, with athletes leaving the river and racing across land, carrying their canoes, before getting back in the water again.

Best viewing points for the races are at the start and finish points at the Stockton campus of the University of Durham, at HMB Endeavour, and at Preston Park, Eaglescliffe.