CANOE SLALOM: Experienced campaigner Rosalyn Lawrence has thrown down the gauntlet to two-time Olympic medallist, Jessica Fox, in the K1 event at the Australian National Slalom Championships in Sydney.
27-year-old Lawrence posted the quickest time on the first run of the Penrith course, and went even quicker on the second run, but picked up four seconds of penalties to put her two seconds behind the Olympic silver and bronze medallist.
Fox’s qualifying time was 87.24, compared to Lawrence’s 89.56. Fox’s younger sister, Noemie, qualified third.
Rio Olympian Ian Borrows was quickest in the men’s C1, but he’s set to face a tough challenge from 18-year-old Tristan Carter in tomorrow’s final.
27-year-old Borrows finished his second run in 87.56 seconds, 0.19 seconds ahead of Carter. But the teenager picked up six seconds in penalties, meaning his raw time was a blistering 81.75.
Tasmania’s Daniel Watkins qualified third.
In Thursday’s other events, Lawrence teamed up with Alison Borrows to win the women’s C2, while Alexandra Vogel and Robin Jeffery won the mixed C2 title.
All event finals will be held on Friday.
Day 1: Wednesday 11 January
Olympians Jessica Fox and Lucien Delfour have made strong starts to the 2016 Australian Slalom Nationals in Sydney, posting the fastest times in their opening events.
Fox, who won K1 bronze at the Rio Olympics to add to the silver she won in London four years earlier, was the only paddler to go under 100 seconds in the women’s C1 opening rounds at Penrith.
Her 99.23 with four seconds of penalties on her second run put her 1.29 seconds ahead of fellow New South Welshwoman, Ros Lawrence, with Fox’s younger sister, Noemie, a further 0.39 seconds behind in third.
Fox will be increasing her focus on C1 events this year, with the discipline making its Olympic debut on Tokyo in 2020.
Delfour sizzled down the course in the men’s K1 preliminaries, his time of 82.84 on his second run putting him 1.37 seconds ahead of Tasmania’s Daniel Watkins, with Victoria’s Timothy Anderson 1.20 seconds back in third position.
Delfour, who missed the semi-finals of the K1 in Rio after attracting a 50-second penalty for missing a gate, was one of just a handful of paddlers who completed the challenging course without a gate touch.
In Wednesday’s other result, brothers Kaspar and Kristian Fiebig posted the quickest qualifying time in the men’s C2.
Ross Solly
Canoeing Australia
