2024 Paralympics: Canoe Finals Live
The last Day of Competition in Paris
11:15 (CET)
Good morning, and welcome to the LAST day of competition here in Paris. You find me at Le stade nautique de Vaires-sur-Marne for the Canoe Finals. I’m letting the breeze off Lac de Vaires-sur-Marne blow away the cobwebs from a late night at the Basketball final yesterday.
I’m most definitely feeling less spritely than I was 10 days ago, but here’s hoping that some Canoe action with plenty of British interest can provide a pick-me-up. The canoe events are fast and furious, short and sweet, covering just 200m. I’ll be bringing you the A Finals today. Only the best.
If the nippy competition pace doesn’t do the trick, there’s always Phryge dancing on a barge to Pirates of the Caribbean and Les Champs-Élysées performed by a live brass band, apparently. Photo evidence below.
Finals begin at 11.25, with the Women’s Kayak and the Men Va’a events
FYI, the Kayak and Va’a are two different types of canoe boat. Athletes use a double-bladed paddle for Kayaks, which are faster, and a single-bladed paddle for a Va’a.
Para canoe athletes have a physical lower limb impairment and may also have impaired trunk function. There are three classifications for Kayak and for Va’a.
11:25
The first Finals Race is the Women’s Kayak 200m KL1 A Final, with Great Britain’s Jeanette Chippington (54) racing in Lane 1.
Chippington has represented Great Britain in the Para Canoe since the sport’s Paralympic debut at Rio, where she won gold. She came 6th in Tokyo.
This is her 8th Paralympic Games however, having first competed in Swimming at the Seoul Games in 1988.
Jeanette finishes in 7th position. Chile, Ukraine and Germany make up the podium. Katherinne Wollermann wins with a new Paralympic Games Best (PGB) of 51.95 seconds. Jeanette said:
“I was extremely pleased to make the final. That was my number one goal. I’m really pleased with my performance.”
”It’s amazing, I’ve got a huge crowd, my friends and family out here. I do feel it isn’t all about me, it’s them having a wonderful time and enjoying that experience along with me.”
11.34 - B final of the Women’s KL2. Won by Egypt’s Salwa Ahmed, who will rank 9th overall. All four boats finish within <2 seconds of each other.
11.36
The second A Final race sees Emma Wiggs (44) and Charlotte Henshaw (37) take to the water in the Women’s KL2 A Final.
Yesterday Wiggs won gold in the Women’s VL2 with a time of 58.88 seconds. Henshaw also won gold in the in the Women’s VL3 with a Paralympic Games Best of 55.70 seconds.
Henshaw won the KL2 in Tokyo 2020 where she set the current PGB of 50.76. She’s also the defending World Champion. Wiggs took the Gold in Rio and the silver last time round in Tokyo. What will today bring?
Wiggs is in lane 2, Henshaw in 4.
11.41 - they’re off. Henshaw is fast off the mark but both Brits lead this race. It’s a British 1-2 with Henshaw taking gold, Wiggs silver and Germany’s Anja Adler taking bronze. It’s a new PGB for Henshaw of 49.07.
Speaking after the race, the 2024 Paralympic Champion Charlotte Henshaw said:
“That was probably the hardest 200 metres weather-wise that I've ever had to do at a major.”
“When that big gust of the crosswind came through and my boat just moved what felt about 50 metres to the left, you could feel the energy of the race change. I could feel everybody sort of go to quick thinking, what are we going to do now?”
“It was not pretty, but really proud of how I managed to think quickly, draw on all my experience of water sports and get over the line first.”
“I just I can't even believe that I won a gold yesterday and I'm standing here with another one. It’s been really special to give myself two goes of it.”
KL2 silver medallist Emma Wiggs had this to say:
“It was horrendous, if I'm honest. A few years ago, we wouldn't have survived some of that weather, so everyone who lined up and finished should be so proud. I'm just incredibly shocked and blown away to get the silver.”
“Those of us with less core function really struggle in those conditions, particularly a direct crosswind. So it was a fight the whole way.”
Next up is the Men’s VL2 A Final. Edward Clifton makes his Paralympic Debut in Paris, having only taken up the sport in 2021. He’s a former discus thrower in the F51 class. Ed also paddles on the left with the Va’a outrigger on the right, in contrast with the rest of the field. It may make it slightly trickier for him to cope with this cross-wind.
11.48 - they’re off. It’s a fast race with Fernando Rufino de Paulo (BRA) winning in a PGB time of 50.47. Taking silver is team mate Igor Alex Tofalini and completing the podium is Blake Haxton for the United States.
Great Britain’s Clifton finished a respectable 7th in 54.78.
After the race he said:
“I'm pleased with 7th, but not that pleased with my performance. I've done a lot better in training, I just wish I could have done that a little bit more.
“It does spur you on. Obviously I've had a taste for it now, so I want to come back.”
On his first Games experience, Ed said:
“I've loved it, it's been such a good journey. It's been mad, everyone on the team has been so helpful and supportive.”
12.11 - B final of the Women’s KL3. Won by Uzbekistan’s Shakhnoza Miraeva, who will rank 9th overall.
The Penultimate A Final is the Women’s KL3 which sees Hope Gordon (29) and Laura Sugar MBE (33) compete.
Hope Gordon earned a silver medal in yesterday’s VL3. Paris marks her summer Paralympics debut, having previously competed for Britain in para nordic skiing at the 2022 Winter Paralympics in Beijing.
Defending Paralympic Champion Laura Sugar set a PGB of 48.14 in the heats. This is her third Paralympic Games, having previously represented Great Britain in 2016 Rio in T44 100 and 200m.
12.14 - they’re off. Laura Sugar and Nelia Barbosa (France) get off quickly, with Sugar extending the lead in the second half of the race to successfully defend her title in a new PGB time of 46.66 - 1 1/2 seconds quicker than the time she set in the heats.
Barbosa takes the silver for France with Germany’s Felicia Laberer completing the podium.
Hope Gordon finished 5th in 49.11.
Laura Sugar said of her win:
“It’s amazing. It won’t sink in for a little while as you are so focused in on the race but I’m really proud.
The second half got a bit windy but I had to use my experience and almost not try too hard. We’ve had a horrible winter at home but I think that put us in good stead."
Hope Gordon said:
“This year, I've really enjoyed training more than ever. I put myself in my own little positive bubble and I wanted to keep that the entire way through this competition, regardless of the results. I think I've done that.”
“I'm still quite new into canoeing. I definitely want to be on that start line in LA. I think I've got a lot to still learn and develop over the next four years.”
12.33 - B Final of the Men’s VL3. Won by Argentina’s Emilio Ariel Atamanuk, who will rank 9th overall.
Our last final of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games to take place on the water at Vaires-sur-Marne Stadium is the Men’s VL3 and sees Great Britain’s Jack Eyers (35) fulfill his life time ambition of competing in a Paralympic Games. Eyers set a PGB of 48.59 in the semi-final just over an hour ago.
Whilst this is his first Paralympic Games as an athlete, Eyer’s was a stuntperson in the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games.
12.41 - The final race has started. Eyers in Lane 6. Its a tight race all the way, but Vladislav Yepifanov takes the gold for Ukraine in a new PGB 47.49, Eyers takes the silver in 47.87 for Great Britain and New Zealand’s Peter Cowan completes the podium. Curtis McGrath for Australia just misses out on the podium finishing fourth.
Eyers said of his performance:
“It was pretty epic. For the last 12 months, I’ve been exposing myself to harsh conditions, crosswind conditions, strong wind conditions.”
“The goal was always to start para canoe and to become a Paralympian. I’ve now completed the set with Europeans, world cup, world championships and now Paralympics. I’ve completed the set and job done. So pleased, so happy, just content.”
2 gold and 2 silver for Great Britain at one of the last medal events of the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games.
Summing up Great Britain’s performance at this Games, Henshaw said:
“We've done an amazing job this Games and I think we are so well-funded by the National Lottery. We are given really top-class facilities when we are training at home but also when we come here.”
“We punch well above our weight in terms of country size and are consistently in those top three of the medals table. Immensely grateful and proud that I've managed to contribute.”
Reflecting on a hugely successful Paralympics for GB, Laura Sugar added
“We are not just our canoeing team, there is a whole ParalympicsGB team. We’ve had the TV on downstairs cheering everyone on. It’s a special team to be a part of.”
“ParalympicsGB are constantly pushing the boundaries. We are so well supported, we have amazing staff and it goes to show with the medals, PBs and world records. There’s up and coming athletes coming through and that’s what drives the sport.”