SA sprint canoeists make semis
2008-08-19 15:51
Beijing - The South African Olympic sprint canoeists continued their successful Olympic campaign when all of them safely negotiated their heats and secured semi-finals, fronted by the impressive K1 racers Shaun Rubenstein and Jen Hodson.
Rubenstein finished fifth in his heat in which Canada's Adam Van Koeverden set a new world best time, and said the race had gone precisely as he had planned.
"My focus today was on the beginning section of the race to make sure that I was up there with the guys and to make sure that I had my speed. in the last section of the race I maintained my speed throughout, and the other guys did pull away a bit. Hopefully I will have some more gas in the tank when I need it in the semi-finals."
Rubenstein produced a stunning start that saw him jump clear of all the other paddlers, and matched the record-breaking Van Koeverden over the first 150m stroke for stroke. He added that he was planning his racing around the 1000m semi-final on Wednesday, which will require a special effort as it an unusually strong semi-final, loaded with podium candidates Anton Ryakhov, Ben Fouhy, Ken Wallace, Marcus Oscarsson and Jerneg Zupancic. Only three will advance to the final on Friday.
"All six guys on paper can make the final, so it is going to be a very tough race. It is my first do-or-die race, and I am here to do. I am going to really gutsy and tough, and that all comes from within. You have to want it the most," he added.
'I was pretty nervous'
Hodson finished her heat in the women's 500m K1 in third - one thousandth of a second behind second placed Spaniard Maria Portela - and said that she was relieved to have the race behind her.
"I haven't raced since the Polish World Cup, and that wasn't a good race for me," said Hodson. "I was pretty nervous on the startline, and while I didn't feel it was my best, I am chuffed to get it out of the way."
"I also tend to get better and better with each race, so I am pleased to be in the semi-finals," she added.
Benoni teenager Calvin Mokoto qualified for his second semi-final in as many days, when he finished seventh in the men's 500m C1 heat, and said he had reached his goals, and was ready to give his all in the semi-finals later in the week.
Mokoto set a new personal best in his heat, shaving a full second off the time he posted in the recent World Cup in Poland.
"I have reached my goals, so now I just want to give it my all in the semi-finals."
Confident
The fledgling K2 crew of Michelle Eray and Bridgitte Hartley completed the day's successful transition from the heats to the semi-finals, but not until they had survived an agonising wait to see if they qualified as the fastest eighth-placed boat in the two heats.
In the end their time of 1:47.341 was better than the Chinese crew's 1:47.645, and the duo were able to celebrate their place in the semis, confident that their next race together will be even better.
"We're a bit like playing Russian Roulette," said Eray. "Some day were are on fire, and some days were ordinary. Today we were pretty ordinary, and we both know that we can do a lot, lot better. Bear in mind that we only got together in June and this is our seventh race together."
"At halfway we realised that we were off the pace a bit, and at the 250 meter mark we turner on the "Engine Bridgitte" and we came back in a group with the Slovakians, the Japanese and the British. But it almost seemed to happen too fast," Eray added.
Hartley agreed. "I have this routine that I use to pick it up at the 250 mark, but I was in such a bubble that I didn't do it."
The semi-finals get under way on Wednesday, continuing to Thursday.