Joe Clarke quickest as kayak cross makes Olympic debut
Joe Clarke put the disappointment of missing out on a canoe slalom K1 gold swiftly behind him by qualifying quickest for the kayak cross.
The 31-year-old Stone paddler, who finished fifth in Thursday’s K1 final, was quickly back in action less than 24 hours later at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium for the kayak cross time trial round.
Clarke is a three-time world champion in a discipline making its debut at Paris 2024 and favourite to become its first Olympic gold.
His qualifying time of 66.08 seconds earned him the No.1 ranking for today’s first round, meaning he gets to pick his lane for a race which also features Tunisia’s Salim Jemai and America’s Casey Eichfeld.
Fellow Stone paddler Adam Burgess, silver medallist in Monday’s canoe singles event, was the 26th fastest qualifier and goes up against Germany’s Noah Hegge, Slovakia’s Jakub Grigar and Slovenia’s Peter Kauzer in what will be his first ever kayak cross race.
Both the men’s and women’s kayak cross run through to Monday and have the potential to be among the highlights of the Games. The racing is frenetic, with competitors dropping into the water from a steep ramp. They are also required to perform a 360 degree roll halfway down the course.
"I really see this as a gateway to the sport,” said Clarke, after Friday’s ranking round. “It's not quite as technical as the slalom, and I think it's going to be a really big hit on the TV."
After missing out on gold and prestige of becoming the first two-time K1 Olympic champion, he now has only one target in sight.
"That's why I'm here, to try and win the event,” he said. "There are definitely different experience levels here, and I think when we get going and start knocking a few people out is when it's going to start getting interesting, because the last 16, eight, last four are going to be really tight racing."