Jess Fox dominates with double gold at Canoe Slalom World Cup

NSW Institute of Sport’s (NSWIS) Jessica Fox won two gold medals at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup over the weekend, with a series of stunning performances in the K1 and C1 in Liptovsky Mikulas, Slovakia. The double puts her in good stead as she begins to look towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Fox went into the K1 final on Saturday as the fast qualifier and finished almost two seconds ahead of Austria’s Corinna Kuhnle and Germany’s Ricarda Funk, with a time of 101.20. She found herself on the winner’s podium on Sunday, too, putting a full seven seconds between herself and second-placed Tereza Fiserova to take out the women’s C1 final with an error-free time of 106.34.

Fox is well-placed to stake her claim for a gold medal when women’s C1 makes its debut at the Olympics in two years’ time, but credited her double in Slovakia with keeping focus on the challenge in front of her.

“I guess I was just very process driven and I knew I had to make the final before I could think of the double.

“But when I got into that final I had a solid run, I just wanted to charge in and attack it, and fix the errors from the first run.

“I’m very pleased and surprised with that time at the finish,” she said. “I think the field is growing every year, and the girls are very competitive.”

The Olympic medallist also thanked Australians in the stands for their support during her winning runs.

“I could hear it at the start, I could hear it in the middle, I could hear the Aussies and the crowd,” she said.

“It was such an awesome run. To be able to back up after yesterday, it takes it out of you physically and mentally and emotionally, so I’m really pleased with that final.”

In other results for NSWIS athletes, Noemie Fox finished in seventh place in the women’s C1 final, after qualifying in third place in the semi-final. Ros Lawrence finished in 20^th place, while in the men’s K1, Daniel Watkins finished the semi-final in 37th place.

The second 2018 ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup begins in Krakow, Poland next weekend, where Jessica Fox and Ros Lawrence will compete against each other in the C1, K1 and Extreme Kayak, with Noemie Fox competing in the C1.

RESULTS – ICF CANOE SLALOM WORLD CUP

WOMEN’S C1

1. FOX Jessica          (AUS)   106.43
2. FISEROVA Tereza  (CZE)   113.96
3. FRANKLIN Mallory (GBR)  115.10

WOMEN’S K1

1. FOX Jessica           (AUS)  101.20
2. KUHNLE Corinna    (AUT)  102.78
3. FUNK Ricarda        (GER) 103.65