Triple Olympian Henriette Engel Hansen has celebrated her return to canoe marathon racing with a gold medal in the women’s K1 at the World Cup at the Mechelen course in Hazewinkel, Belgium.

Engel Hansen competed in sprint canoe at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics, and won a World Championship gold medal in the K2 1000 at the 2014 World Championships.

She and fellow Dane, Emilie Rosenkilde, cleared out in the final kilometre of the 3.6 kilometre race to take control in the short track final, the pair working together well to ensure no-other paddler could get near.

Dutch paddler Eef Haas finished third.

Frenchman Quentin Urban unleashed a powerful finishing burst over the final 200 metres to win his first World Cup short track marathon gold medal, with Hungary’s Adrian Boros second.

Another Frenchman, Stephane Boulanger, won the bronze in the 20-strong field.

France also tasted victory in the men’s C1, with Pierrick Martin showing his class over the final portage of to hold out Czech Vaclev Dubcek, with another Frenchman, Tanguy Soucheyre, finishing third.

The junior events saw a win for Great Britain’s Georgia Carmicel in the short track K1, an outstanding result for a young athlete with several years of junior racing still in front of her.

German Tobias Heuser won the men’s junior K1, while teammate Arved Heine won the junior men’s C1.

Sunday will see the full K1 and C1 junior and senior marathons contested.