Olympic Canoeing 2016: Thursday Slalom Medal Winners, Order, Times and Results
Ladislav Skantar and Peter Skantar secured gold for Slovakia in the men’s canoe slalom double on Thursday at the 2016 Summer Olympics, while in the women's singles Maialen Chourraut produced a stunning performance to triumph.
The two cousins put together an exemplary run to finish narrowly ahead of Great Britain at Whitewater Stadium, while France’s score was enough for bronze. The duo posted its time early in the final and had to watch on nervously as illustrious teams chased down its marker.
Later in the day, Chourraut produced one of the runs of the competition so far, taking apart the field in the final. The Spaniard had time to spare on New Zealand's Luuka Jones and Australia's Jessica Fox, who took silver and bronze, respectively.
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Here’s a recap of the canoe slalom action from Rio, the results from the finals and how the medal table stands:
| Men's Double | Ladislav Skantar and Peter Skantar (SVK) 101.58 | David Florence and Richard Hounslow (GBR) 102.01 | Matthieu Peche and Gauthier Klauss (FRA) 103.24 |
| Women's Single | Maialen Chourraut (ESP) 98.65 | Luuka Jones (NZL) 101.82 | Jessica Fox (AUS) 102.49 |
Skantar Pair Star for Slovakia
In the men’s final, the pre-race favourites were the British pairing of David Florence and Richard Hounslow, especially after they seemed to coast through their semi-final with the third-fastest time.
Even so, when it comes to the final of these notoriously unpredictable events, things can change quickly. All eyes were on the early runners to see if one of those duos could put together a potential gold-medal run.
The United States, first up, were unable to, as were the pairs from Switzerland, Russia and Slovenia. But the Slovakian team nailed the opening section of the course and, as noted by Planet Canoe, were well ahead of the rest of the teams:
Skantar and Skantar continued to pick up pace throughout the run, and their eventual score of 101.58 far surpassed the best effort to that point. But with some quality still to make their way through the course, they had to wait anxiously for the final to be finished.
Matthieu Peche and Gauthier Klauss went close for the French, while neither Poland nor the Czech Republic were good enough for a medal, with the latter team really struggling around the course. Going third from last, as noted by BBC Sport, the omens looked good for Great Britain:
When Florence and Hounslow could only take second spot with their run, gold was almost secured for Skantar and Skantar, with just Germany to come.
Franz Anton and Jan Benzien were unable to produce the time needed, handing Slovakia its first gold of the Games. Great Britain were narrowly behind in the silver-medal spot, with France clinging on for bronze.
Chourraut Leaves Field Trailing
In the women’s individual event, it was Jones who laid down an early marker, posting 101.82 with the fourth run of the final.
CGW’s Andrew Mulligan was very impressed with her performance:
The New Zealander’s effort was proving tough to better as well; Australia’s Fox thought she had done it, although a two-point penalty accrued for clipping the gate bumped her back down into second behind Jones.
And as had been the case earlier in the final, those competitors going out later in the day were finding the pressure difficult to cope with. Indeed, Katerina Kudejova was well short of her best, while the well-fancied Fiona Pennie failed to find her rhythm, too.
It became apparent that only a very special run would be enough to usurp Jones at the summit of the leaderboard. Unfortunately for the woman from New Zealand, Chourraut produced exactly that.
The Spaniard’s display was extraordinary. She weaved her way expertly around the course, picking exceptional lines and showcasing remarkable poise to dart through the gates. The result was a final score of just 98.65, enough to draw gasps from the watching crowd.
Planet Canoe documented Chourraut’s reaction:
As Pennie faltered, the only competitor who could have beaten her leading time was Austria’s Corinna Kuhnle. However, just like those of the rest of the field, she was far behind after Chourraut’s sensational score.
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