New Zealander Lisa Carrington again lit up the nautical stadium at Vaires-sur-Marne on Friday, winning her seventh Olympic gold medal with a typically dominant display together with Alicia Hoskin in the women’s kayak double 500m race.
On a day that featured four medals and many tight finishes, the Kiwis blasted into the lead in their final and never relented, leaving the rest of the field in their wake as Carrington’s personal gold rush continued, adding to the one she got in the kayak four on Thursday.
Their winning time of 1:37.28 was more than two seconds faster than silver medalists Tamara Csipes and Alida Dora Gazso of Hungary.
The official result of the race came after an agonizing wait for the remaining competitors but it ended in joy for both the second Hungarian boat, crewed by Noemie Pupp and Sara Fojt, and the German pairing of Paulina Paszek and Jule Marie Hake.
Both crews received a bronze medal after finishing in a tie for third place.
SEE MORE: Carrington on doorstep of more history after K-2 500m gold
The men’s race was much tighter, with Germany’s Jacob Schopf and Max Lemke winning gold in a time of 1:26.87, just ahead of Hungary’s Bence Nadas and Sandor Totka, while Jean van der Westhuyzen and Tom Green of Australia took the bronze after a photo finish.
Hungary’s Balint Kopasz and Adam Varga sensationally failed to make the men’s kayak double (K2) 500m final on Friday, coming fifth in their semi-final to miss the decider later in the afternoon.
The Hungarians were sitting pretty for much of the race but a late sprint by the American pairing of Jonas Ecker and Aaron Small saw them snatch the fourth and last qualification spot for the final by 0.15 seconds.
Martin Fuksa of the Czechia dominated the field on his way to gold in the men’s canoe single 1,000m final.
Brazil’s Isaquias Queiroz came in second to secure the silver medal, with Serghei Tarnovischi of Moldova picking up the bronze.
SEE MORE: Fuska runs away from everybody to take men’s C-1 1000m gold
The Chinese pair of Xu Shixiao and Sun Mengya powered to victory in the women’s canoe double 500m final, setting an Olympic record of 1:52.81 and breaking the mark of 1:53.73 that they had set earlier in the day.
Ukraine’s Liudmyla Luzan and Anastasiia Rybachok came in second to take silver, with Canada’s Sloan Mackenzie and Katie Vincent finishing third.
With a tailwind providing some of the choppiest waters seen at the Nautical Stadium, Xu and Sun got off to an excellent start but the Canadians kept the pressure on them before fading over the final stretch.
SEE MORE: China tops first repeat podium in canoe sprint history
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.