French paddlers Romane Prigent, Anatole Delassus and Tanguy Addison firmed in favouritism to win gold at the 2021 ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships with impressive heat runs in hot conditions in Slovenia on Wednesday.

Spain’s Miquel Trave was the only athlete to stand between France and a clean sweep of the qualifiers, posting the quickest time in the men’s U23 canoe slalom.

Thirty years after his father won world championship gold on the same Tacen course, 18-year-old Frenchman Tanguy Addison qualified fastest in the men’s junior C1 heats.

“Before the run I felt a little bit stressed, but during the run it felt so good, so clean,” Addison said.

“I think I can go faster. My father is watching in the tribune, it’s so good to be racing here at the same place where he won 30 years ago.”

Prigent said Tacen was fast becoming her favourite canoe slalom course. On Tuesday she was part of the victorious French K1 U23 team, which followed her world cup gold in Ljubljana last year.

“It’s a short run here in Tacen, but I did a clean run, with maybe a couple of small mistakes, but I think it was a good one,” Prigent said.

“I love this course, I love the way we can paddle with the water, I think it’s really nice. The course is even nicer with the drop now.

“I think its good for teams to win a medal at the start, because it shows everyone we are here and we can win gold medals.”

Anatole Delassus won the K1 junior world title in Krakow in 2019, and showed he is ready to take on the older paddlers with an error-free run in the U23 qualifiers.

“I felt good on the water, my run was very good, but I hope I’ve kept my best run for Friday,” Delassus said.

“I feel excited and very motivated for these championships. It’s been hard, but the French Federation have organised a lot of training, so I feel good.”

Miquel Trave is one of only a handful of male paddlers in the world who competes in both the K1 and the C1. On Wednesday he comfortably qualified for the semi-finals in the U23 K1 in the morning, and then set the fastest time in the C1 in the afternoon.

“I felt really good in the water, a bit nervous maybe because it’s been two years without a world championships, so it was good to feel the start line again,” Trave said.

“I don’t feel any pressure, I obviously want to get another world title, so I will fight for it. It’s not easy, there are 10 or 12 people who can win this world championship, so it is time to fight, time to focus on the semi-finals.”

The ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships continue on Thursday, with racing in men’s and women’s junior kayak, and the women’s junior and U23 canoe.

Source: https://www.canoeicf.com/news/flying-french-show-way-slalom-worlds

The Czech Republic picked up four gold and three silver medals in a dominant display in the team events on the opening day of the ICF junior and U23 canoe slalom world championships in Slovenia on Tuesday.

The Czech teams won three of the four canoe finals, and also won the men’s U23 kayak team final. Host nation Slovenia was the next best performing nation, picking up two gold medals.

Among the Czech winners was the impressive women’s junior canoe team, who posted a time more than one second quicker than their victorious teammates in the U23 category. The junior team finished almost 20 seconds ahead of the next best team, Germany.

French paddler Romane Prigent showed her liking for the difficult Tacen course by helping her team defend its gold medal in the women’s K1 event. Prigent won gold at an ICF world cup on the same course last year, and was also a member of the K1 U23 team that won gold in 2019 in Krakow.

There were also gold medals for Germany in the women’s K1 junior team’s event, and for host nation Slovenia in the men’s junior team and the U23 men’s canoe.

It was the fifth time Slovenia has won gold in the men’s junior K1 team event, while a silver medal for the Czech Republic in the women’s K1 junior race continued a remarkable record of finishing on the podium at 18 of the 20 world championships in this event.

RESULTS

WOMEN’S KAYAK U23 TEAMS

• France      101.09     (4 seconds penalties)
• Slovakia   104.24     (0)
• Germany  106.39     (6)

WOMEN’S KAYAK JUNIOR TEAMS

1. Germany            108.08     (0)
2. Czech Republic 116.05     (8)
3. Slovenia             119.19     (6)

MEN’S KAYAK U23 TEAMS

1. Czech Republic 88.09    (0)
2. France                92.41    (4)
3. Germany            92.57    (6)

MEN’S KAYAK JUNIOR TEAMS

1. Slovenia             95.97    (2)
2. Czech Republic 96.95    (2)
3. France                97.69    (4)

MEN’S CANOE U23 TEAMS

1. Slovenia             93.80      (2)
2. Czech Republic 94.64      (0)
3. France                94.72      (4)

MEN’S CANOE JUNIOR TEAMS

1. Czech Republic  96.80     (0)
2. France               105.33     (6)
3. Germany           106.21     (4)

WOMEN’S CANOE U23 TEAMS

1. Czech Republic 112.33   (2)
2. France               114.23   (4)
3. Slovakia             118.78   (6)

WOMEN’S CANOE JUNIOR TEAMS

1. Czech Republic  110.61   (2)
2. Germany             129.06  (10)
3. Slovakia               138.76  (6)

Source: https://www.canoeicf.com/news/czech-record-four-gold-opening-day

Danes se je na Savi začelo svetovno prvenstvo v slalomu na divjih vodah za mladince in mlajše člane. Prvi dan so bile na sporedu ekipne tekme, kjer so naši mladi tekmovalci in tekmovalke zablesteli ter izkoristili poznavanje domače proge. Mladinska ekipa kajakašev ter kanuisti do 23 let so priveslali do naslovov svetovnih prvakov, mladinska ekipa kajakašic pa je bila tretja.

Kakšen začetek svetovnega prvenstva na domači progi v Tacnu za mlade slalomiste na divjih vodah. Prvi dan tekmovanja so osvojili kar tri odličja, od tega dva naslova svetovnih ekipnih prvakov.

Kajakaši Jan Ločnikar, Urban Gajšek in Jakob Šavli so se na brzicah Save znašli najbolje izmed vseh ekip na startu in se veselili zlate medalje v konkurenci mladincev. Kljub dvema kazenskima sekundama so bili na koncu 98 stotink sekunde hitrejši od ekipe Češke, Francija pa je na tretjem mestu zaostala za sekundo in 72 stotink. Slednji so bili na progi sicer hitrejši od slovenske ekipe, a so jih zmage stali štirje dotiki.

Zdravljica je igrala tudi v čast ekipi kanuistov do 23 let, ki so jo sestavljali Nejc Polenčič, Juš Javornik in Urh Turnšek. Tudi tu so bili sicer hitrejši Francozi, a so bili Slovenci na progi natančnejši, kar jim je tudi prineslo končni uspeh. Z dvema sekundama pribitka so bili 84 stotink sekunde hitrejši od Čehov, ki so bili drugi, Francozi pa so s štirimi kazenskimi sekundami za našimi kanuisti zaostali za 92 stotink.

Do kolajne so priveslala tudi dekleta. Helena Domajnko, Sara Belingar in Ula Skok so namreč osvojile bronasto kolajno. Za novimi svetovnimi mladinskimi prvakinjami iz Nemčije so zaostale za 11 sekund in 11 stotink. Na drugo mesto so se uvrstile predstavnice Češke.

V konkurenci kajakašic do 23 let so Eva Alina Hočevar, Lea Novak in Zala Zanoškar osvojile peto mesto. Zmagale so Francozinje, pred Slovakinjami in Nemkami. Kajakaši so 23 let, v postavi Tine Kancler, Lan Tominc in Ulan Valant so bili sedmi. Svetovni prvaki so postali Čehi, drugi so bili Francozi, tretji pa Nemci.

Mladinska ekipa kanuistov z Martinom Galetom, Adamom Križajem in Titom Šenkom je bila šesta. Zlato so si priborili Čehi, drugi so bili Francozi, tretji pa Nemci.

Na startu smo imeli tudi ekipi kanuistk med mlajšimi članicami kot tudi mladinkami. V konkurenci do 23 let so bile Eva Alina Hočevar, Lea Novak in Naja Pinterič pete, enako mesto pa je zasedla tudi ekipa mladink z Najo Pinterič, Asjo Jug in Emo Lampič. V obeh konkurencah so zmagale Čehinje. Med kanuistkami do 23 let so bile druge Francozinje, tretje Slovakinje, med mladinkami pa je srebro pripadlo Nemkam, bron pa Slovakinjam.

V sredo se prvenstvo nadaljuje s kvalifikacijami kajakašic in kajakašev do 23 let ter kanuistov v obeh starostnih skupinah.