American teenager Evy Leibfarth had a perfect pre-Olympic result, France picked up two gold medals and Great Britain’s Bethan Forrow picked up her country’s first win for the week on the penultimate day of the ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships in Slovenia.

While most of her Olympic competitors have already arrived in Tokyo, 17-year-old Leibfarth opted to stay in Europe to contest the junior world titles. She won bronze in the canoe on Thursday, and then followed it up with a stunning performance to take the K1 gold on Friday.

“This is definitely something I’ve been dreaming of for a really long time, I knew I wanted to come here before the Games because I knew than no matter what happened it would be a really good feeling,” Leibfarth said.

“Junior worlds has always been a pinnacle for me, the junior worlds and the Olympics, and I know that I only get limited chances so I wanted to do the junior worlds while I still could.

“Having this good feeling on the water is going to help me so much in Tokyo mentally. To have the result that I wanted here is mentally so good for me for Tokyo.”

Leibfarth finished more than four seconds ahead of France’s Emma Vuitton, with Slovakia’s Zuzana Pankova third.

Nicolas Gestin had to withstand a strong challenge from countryman Jules Bernardet before retaining his U23 canoe world title. Gestin watched from the finish line as his teammate crossed in the gold medal position, but a video review showed Bernardet had touched a gate and was given a two-second penalty.

“I really wanted to keep this title, because I thought it was a good one in 2019, so to get two titles would be a good step forward,” Gestin said.

“It’s a bit like a home course for me here. I’m not Slovenian, but every time I come here I have good memories. It was my first world cup medal, my first world cup final, so I really wanted to be good here.

“I knew when Jules was in the final that he would be fast. But that’s the game, I’m happy for him because it’s his first world championship medal, and he is so fast so he deserves a medal.”

Czech former U23 world champion Vaclav Chaloupka posted a clean run, but could not match the time of the two Frenchman and had to settle for bronze.

French teenager Titouan Castryck posted a near-perfect run to win the men’s junior kayak title, defeating European junior silver medalist Martin Rudorfer of the Czech Republic, with Slovenia’s Jan Locnikar giving the host nation its only medal of the day.

“It’s my first ever French national team selection, so it’s very nice,” Castryck said.

“I was very nervous before the semi-final, but for the final I was okay. At the bottom of the course I didn’t paddle very well, but I think I did a great job on the rest of the course. For my first ever world championships it was very nice.”

Great Britain’s Bethan Forrow caught the attention of the paddling world when she made the final of the ICF senior world championships in Brazil in 2018, and on Friday showed that performance was no fluke with a determined win in the women’s U23.

Forrow picked up an early penalty, but said she knew she could make up the time before the finish.

“I told myself to keep calm, I knew that there was a lot of time to be made up at the bottom of the course, I just fought right through to the end,” Forrow said.

“It’s been amazing getting back on the start line. With Covid it’s been two years since we’ve been on the international start line, so I think the whole team was eager to get back out here.

“I’m speechless. It’s been a crazy weekend, and the girls have not made it easy at all. I’ve absolutely loved paddling in Tacen.”

Slovakia’s Emanuela Luknarova won silver, while Germany’s Elena Apel took home the bronze medal.

The 2021 ICF junior and U23 world championships will conclude on Sunday with extreme slalom competition for men and women.

RESULTS

WOMEN’S JUNIOR K1

1. LEIBFARTH Evy  (USA)   93.52 (0 seconds of penalties)
2. VUITTON Emma   (FRA)  98.23 (2)
3. PANKOVA Zuzana  (SVK) 98.97 (2)

MEN’S JUNIOR K1

1. CASTRYCK Titouan (FRA)  85.01 (0)
2. RUDORFER Martin  (CZE)   85.82 (0)
3. LOCNIKAR Jan  (SLO)         88.85  (0)

WOMEN’S U23 C1

1. FORROW Bethan            (GBR) 100.62 (2)
2. LUKNAROVA Emanuela (SVK) 101.43 (0)
3. APEL Elena                      (GER) 101.60 (0)

MEN’S U23 C1

1. GESTIN Nicolas       (FRA)   86.27 (0)
2. BERNARDET Jules  (FRA)   87.39 (2)
3. CHALOUPKA Vaclav (CZE) 88.83 (0)

Source: https://www.canoeicf.com/news/leibfarth-sends-out-pre-olympics-warning

A 21-year-old Frenchwoman competing at her first world championships and two Czech sisters stole the show on day four of the ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships in Slovenia on Friday.

Coline Charel shocked even herself by winning gold in the women’s U23 canoe slalom kayak final, Klara and Tereza Kneblova finished first and second in the junior women’s canoe final, while another Czech, Jakub Krejci, won gold in the men’s U23 kayak final.

The final gold on offer on Friday went to Italian Martino Barzon in the men’s junior canoe final.

The Kneblova sisters became the first siblings in the history of international canoe slalom to win a gold and silver medal, when they finished one and two in the junior canoe final.

16-year-old Klara said it was one of the first times she had ever finished ahead of her 18-year-old sister. She was the last paddler on the course, and was unaware it was her sister’s time she would need to beat to take the gold.

“I didn’t know that until I got to the finish line and saw, it was amazing,” Klara Kneblova said.

“She said to me ‘oh my God, we did it, can you believe it?’ We have a good relationship. I have never been better than her on water, so this maybe the first time. It’s amazing.”

Bronze went to American Evy Leibfarth, in her final race before the Olympics. Leibfarth picked up six seconds in penalties, which dropped her from first to the bronze medal position.

Coline Charel was the slowest qualifier into the women’s kayak final, but went into the race knowing she had already recorded her best ever result.

She wasn’t confident of winning a medal after picking up four seconds in penalties, but then watched on as the remainder of the field struggled to tame the difficult course.

“I don’t believe it, it’s amazing at my first world championships,” Charel said.

“On the finish line I didn’t think I could do it, I thought other runners would be better. I went in knowing I had nothing to lose, everything to win.”

Charel finished just 0.14 seconds ahead of French teammate, Romane Prigent, with American teenager Ria Sribar winning her first international medal by finishing third.

Many of the more highly rated paddlers failed to make the final of the men’s U23 K1, throwing the race wide open. But the performance of Czech Krejci, paddling in his first U23 world titles after winning silver at a junior level, left the gold medal in no doubt.

He finished 2.36 seconds ahead of Great Britain’s Jonny Dickson, with another British paddler, Christopher Bowers, in third.

In the men’s C1 junior final Italy’s Martino Barzon produced one of the most impressive runs of the day, posting a time of 91.92 with a two-second penalty to secure the gold.

Martin Kratochvil and Adam Kral added to the Czech Republic’s medal haul with silver and bronze.

The ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships will continue on Saturday, with semi finals and finals in the men’s and women’s U23 canoe and the junior kayak.

RESULTS

WOMEN’S U23 K1

1. CHAREL Coline       (FRA)   99.10 (4 seconds of penalties)
2. PRIGENT Romane  (FRA)   99.24 (2)
3. SRIBAR Ria               (USA)  99.42 (0)

MEN’S U23 K1

1. KREJCI Jakub                (CZE)  81.89 (0)
2. DICKSON Jonny           (GBR) 84.25 (0)
3. BOWERS Christopher (GBR) 84.55 (0)

WOMEN’S JUNIOR C1

1. KNEBLOVA Klara      (CZE)   101.59 (0)
2. KNEBLOVA Tereza   (CZE)   102.18 (0)
3. LEIBFARTH Evy         (USA)  107.10 (6)

MEN’S JUNIOR C1

1. BARZON Martino      (ITA)   91.92   (2)
2. KRATOCHVIL Martin (CZE)  92.19   (0)
3. KRAL Adam                 (CZE)  93.78   (2)

Source: ICF

Na savskih brzicah smo danes spremljali prve končne odločitve v posamičnih tekmah. V štirih kategorijah, ki so bile danes na sporedu, smo imeli tri finaliste, najboljši slovenski rezultat dneva pa je s petim mestom med kajakaši do 23 let postavil Tine Kancler.

Primorski kajakaš Tine Kancler se je kot zadnji kajakaš do 23 let uvrstil iz polfinala v boj za kolajne, saj je po polfinalu zasedal deseto mesto. V drugo je na koncu osvojil peto mesto, čeprav je imel kar dva dotika. V primeru ‘čiste’ vožnje bi se danes lahko veselil kolajne na domačem svetovnem prvenstvu, in sicer srebrne. Za zmagovalcem je namreč zaostal za pet sekund in 43 stotink, vsi štirje tekmovalci, ki so bili uvrščeni pred njim pa so s progo opravili brez dotikov.

Enkratno polfinalno vožnjo je prikazal kajakaš ljubljanskega kluba Ulan Valant, ki je bil v prvem današnjem nastopu nerešljiva uganka za vse tekmece. V finalu je nato šel na vse ali nič, a na progi dobil 52 kazenskih sekund, tako da je bil deseti.

V polfinalu je obstal celjski kajakaš Lan Tominc, ki je na koncu zasedel 22. mesto.

Naslova svetovnega prvaka med kajakaši do 23 let se je veselil Čeh Jakub Krejči, drugo in tretje mesto pa sta si prveslala Britanca Jonny Dickinson in Christopher Bowers.

V finalu kajakašic do 23 let smo imeli eno predstavnico. Eva Alina Hočevar je ciljala na vrh finala, a v desetih vratih odpeljala ‘na glavo’, kar je bilo precej tvegano. Žal se ji ni izšlo, saj je prejela 50 kazenskih sekund, ki so jo oddaljile od zmagovalnega odra. Bila je deseta. V polfinalu je veslala tudi Zala Zanoškar in osvojila 21. rezultat domačega svetovnega prvenstva.

Za dvojno francosko zmago sta poskrbeli Coline Charel, ki je nastopila na svojem prvem svetovnem prvenstvu, in Romane Prigent, sicer zmagovalka lanskega svetovnega pokala tu v Tacnu. Bronaste kolajne smo se lahko veselili tudi Slovenci, saj si je tretje mesto priveslala Ria Šribar, ameriška kajakašica slovenskih korenin. Mlada Američanka se v Ljubljani počuti že kot doma, nenazadnje se tu letos mudi že vse od januarja.  

Popoldne so sledile še polfinalne in finalne preizkušnje kanuistk in kanuistov v mladinski konkurenci. V ognju smo imeli šest želez, a so tokrat vsi žal ostali pred vrati finala. Najbližje je bil kanuist Martin Gale, ki je bil dvanajsti, od najboljše deseterice pa sta ga ločili dve sekundi. Na progi je sicer pridobil štiri kazenske sekunde, ki so se nato izkazale za usodne. Adam Križaj je v isti konkurenci priveslal na 15. mesto, Tit Šenk pa je bil 22. Svetovni mladinski prvak je postal Italijan Martino Barzon, drugo in tretje mesto pa sta si priborila Čeha Martin Kratochvil in Adam Kral.

Med kanuistkami mladinkami je Naja Pinterič osvojila 17. mesto, Ema Lampič je bila 23., Asja Jug pa 25. Za češko zmagoslavje sta poskrbeli sestri Klara in Tereza Kneblova. Prvakinja je postala 16-letna Klara, ki je svojo starejšo sestro na vodi tokrat premagala prvič. Tretja je bila Američanka Evy Leibfarth, ki po SP v Tacnu potuje na Japonsko, kjer bo nastopila na svojih prvih olimpijskih igrah.

V soboto se prvenstvo nadaljuje s polfinalnimi in finalnimi tekmami kajakašic in kajakašev v mladinski konkurenci ter med kanuistkami in kanuisti v kategoriji do 23 let.