Jess Fox showed no signs of fatigue from her earlier kayak gold medal when she started her canoe title defence.
The Australian Flag Bearer was the second-fastest qualifier from the heats to the semi-finals in the Women’s C1 Singles- the event she won in Tokyo for her first Olympic gold.
Her clean first run time of 100.05 seconds confirmed she was back in the zone. On her second run she had a small touch on a gate for a penalty (103.10). She was only marginally slower than world number two Gabriela Satkova of Czechia, who produced a 99.44 second run in heat one.
Jess remains focussed on the processes while ensuring she stays in the moment of the competition.
“I'm trying to really stay focused on job one; today was the heat, tomorrow will be to make the final top, and then hopefully just be free in that final and go for it as much as I can,” she said.
“In Tokyo, the pressure was immense at this point in the competition. I feel there's been a lot of joy and there's been a bit of relief as well, so that feels great.
“This time, I can come in feeling better, feeling good, feeling like I can enjoy the atmosphere, and I can enjoy this moment and try and be dangerous for the other girls.”
Jess will compete in the women's C1 semi-final on Wednesday 31 August at 11:30pm AEST, with the final to take place at 1:25am AEST (Thursday 1 August).
Anderson progresses to semis in K1
Australians had more reasons to celebrate with Timothy Anderson producing two strong runs in the Men’s K1 Singles heats.
The 30-year-old from Penrith was 11th quickest on his first run (88.37 seconds) and after an impressive second run saw him finish in fifth, 85.78 seconds even with a 2-sec penalty.
“On that second run, I really let myself feel the water and paddle as I like to paddle,” Tim said.
“Top five at the moment is where I want to be. That helps my self-confidence but my expectations are still the same.
Tim will race in the men’s K1 semi-final on Thursday 1 August at 11:30pm AEST, aiming for a berth in the final at 1:30am AEST (Friday 2 August).
French favourite Titouan Castryck had the home crowd screaming as he produced the fastest run of the day with 80.09 in heat two, almost four seconds clear of the field.
Zoe Lorenzin
