It was a mixed day for the Australians at the ICF 2018 Canoe Slalom U23 and Junior World Championships in Ivrea, Italy, with strong performances in the semi-finals but small mistakes in finals.
Daniel Watkins (TAS) and Brodie Crawford (WA) both looked strong in the semi-finals of the U23 men’s C1, with Watkins qualifying for the final in third position and Crawford in eighth spot.
But after a strong start on the difficult Ivrea course, Crawford found himself in trouble in the mid-section of the course and had to double back to avoid missing a gate and finished ninth.
Likewise Watkins started strong, but three gate touches and six seconds in penalty left the Tasmanian in sixth position, 6.39 seconds behind Czech gold medallist Vaclav Chaloupka.
In the women’s U23 K1 Kate Eckhardt (TAS) looked solid in the semi-final, qualifying seventh for the final with a single gate touch.
But four gate touches in the final cruelled any chance Eckhardt had of winning a medal, her final time of 107.26 putting her in seventh place overall.
In other results, Robert Janiszewski (VIC) finished 26th in the C1 junior semi-final in his first World Championships.
The 2018 ICF Canoe Slalom U23 and Junior World Championships will wrap up today, Sunday, 22 July, with the women’s C1 and men’s K1 semis and finals.
Noemie Fox (NSW), Kate Eckhardt, and Demelza Wall (WA/TAS) will contest the C1 from 17:00 AEST. The men’s K1 semis are scheduled from 17:48 with Daniel Watkins and Angus Thompson (NSW) representing Australia.
Racing can be followed live on www.canoeicf.com
Race Programme, Sunday, 22 July 2018
17:00 AEST U23 Women’s C1 Semis
17:48 AEST U23 Men’s K1 Semis
19:30 AEST U23 Women’s C1 Finals
19:52 AEST U23 Men’s K1 Finals
AUSTRALIAN RESULTS FINALS
Saturday, 21 July
U23 Men’s C1
Daniel WATKINS (TAS)          6th      86.96             +6.39  (6)
Brodie CRAWFORD (WA)      9th      102.30            +21.73 (0)
U23 Women’s K1
Kate ECKHARDT (TAS)          7th      107.26            +17.95 (8)
Junior Men’s C1
Robert JANISZEWSKI (VIC)   26th    126.17            +40.47 (4)
See all results: https://www.canoeicf.com/canoe-slalom-world-championships/ivrea-2018/rankings-results
See Canoe Slalom Team Athlete Profiles here: http://paddle.org.au/canoe-slalom-athlete-profiles/