In the first of our big interviews with the 2024 International Canoe Federation Canoe Slalom World Cup Series winners, we spoke to men’s overall kayak champion Anatole Delassus of France.
Experiencing a home Olympic Games is something Anatole Delassus will remember for the rest of his life.
Not only did the Frenchman enjoy watching his sister Marjorie Delassus compete at the Games and his training partner Titouan Castryck win silver, but he also took on the Olympic course.
Delassus was one of the forerunners as he got the opportunity to carve through the gates and navigate the waters before the kayak competition officially got underway.
Although he was not competing for a medal, Delassus said he used his runs as a chance to measure himself against the best.
“It was a good experience for me because I could compare my time with the Olympic champion,” said Delassus.
“I was one second behind the best time in qualifying but I was no good in my final run.
“I was something like four seconds behind but actually it was not the goal as I was in the Olympics to enjoy it and be part of the party.
“The experience was really crazy.
“My sister was racing so I enjoyed feeling the pressure with her.
“My friend and training partner Titouan also got a medal so it was cool to share this success with him too.”
It was the second time Delassus had been a forerunner at the Olympics having also done the job at Tokyo 2020.
But this season has shown that Delassus can be a frontrunner in the sport after putting together a set of excellent performances in the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup Series.
Delassus marked his first season on the senior international Canoe Slalom circuit by topping the overall standings in the men’s K1.
The 23-year-old accumulated 260 points, beating Olympic gold medallist Giovanni De Gennaro of Italy and double world champion Peter Kauzer of Slovenia to take top spot.
He reached the final of all five World Cups, placing ninth in both Augsburg and Prague before ranking fifth in Krakow, second in Ivrea and sixth in La Seu to seal the overall crown.
His performance in Ivrea underlined his talents as he belied his young age to secure silver. Out of all the six medallists across the women’s and men’s K1, Delassus was the only paddler under the age of 30 to make the podium.
“Ivrea was my best final of the season,” said Delassus.
“I did a little mistake at gates 17 and 18 so I was behind Mateusz (Polaczyk) but it was my first senior medal so I was happy with that.
| Ranking | Name | Augsburg | Prague | Krakow | Ivrea | La Seu | Points |
| 1 | Anatole Delassus (FRA) | 39 | 39 | 43 | 55 | 84 | 260 |
| 2 | Giovanni De Gennaro (ITA) | 41 | 60 | 40 | 100 | 241 | |
| 3 | Peter Kauzer (SLO) | 50 | 44 | 50 | 82 | 226 | |
| 4 | Jakub Krejci (CZE) | 15 | 50 | 50 | 41 | 66 | 222 |
| 5 | Ziga Lin Hocevar (SLO) | 40 | 2 | 42 | 38 | 88 | 210 |
| 6 | Vit Prindis (CZE) | 32 | 30 | 55 | 32 | 54 | 203 |
“It was a very tough course especially with the double spin.
“Ivrea is always hard so it was really good to get a medal there.
“I prefer to get a medal on a course like Ivrea rather than one which is flatter and not so technical.”
Delassus believes a key reason behind his consistency this season has been training with 20-year-old French star Castryck who clinched K1 silver at Paris 2024.
“It was my first selection in the senior team so it’s been a good season for me to make every final,” said Delassus.
“Before the season, I didn’t have any expectations as I didn’t know my level in senior but I was training all year with Titouan and I know that he is very, very fast and is doing well in senior.
“I was training with him and my goal was to be not so far from him when we did a timed session.
“He is a very strong technically so during the year I could find my way to paddle from him and I think I learnt a lot from him.
“I was also learning from Benjamin Renia, another French paddler, and we did a very good group of training.
“I think they helped me a lot to progress this year.”
Delassus’ season also included winning the men’s K1 title at the ICF Under-23 Canoe Slalom World Championships in Liptovsky Mikulas.
But it is a gold medal in the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup Series that Delassus really wants to add to his collection.
“I am pretty happy with my season but I am a little bit disappointed not to win a race in senior because I think I can do it,” said Delassus.
“Each time I did a little mistake on my final run and I hope it will be a step to go faster next year.”
Delassus appears to be on well track to making his Olympic debut at Los Angeles 2028 but he insists he is not looking beyond next year’s ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships in Penrith.
“Of course, I would like to race in Los Angeles but we have a lot of good paddlers in France,” added Delassus.
“At the moment I am focused on moving step by step, year after year and looking towards the World Championships in 2025.
“After that, we will see what I can do.
“For next season, I think the first step will be the French selection in April in Paris and then I would like to get a medal at the World Championships in Penrith and get a World Cup win as well.”
Related links
