Home favourite Anna Pulawska powered to the women’s kayak single 500m title at the International Canoe Federation Canoe Sprint World Cup in Poznan, Poland.
After winning two gold medals at the opening World Cup of the season in Szeged last weekend, there was plenty of pressure on the Polish paddler to deliver on home waters.
Pulawska also faced stiff competition with the likes of New Zealand’s Aimee Fisher, China’s Nan Wang, Germany’s Pauline Jagsch and The Netherlands’ Selma Konijn all determined to dash home hopes.
But Pulawska kept her cool as she saw off her rivals to triumph in a time of 1:49.90.
“I feel very good and I’m really surprised because this race was very hard,” said Pulawska.
Click here for start lists and results from Poznan
“I am very happy to win here in my country.
“I didn’t feel pressure.
“I was happy because my family was here so it gave me the power to win.”
Konijn finished strongly to seal silver in 1:50.48, with Fisher securing bronze in 1:50.73.
Fuksa completes brace of golds in Poznan
Czechia’s reigning Olympic champion Martin Fuksa completed a golden double in Poznan with an emphatic victory in the men’s canoe single 1000m final.
Just 24 hours after picking up gold in the men’s C1 500m, Fuksa was standing on top of the podium again.
Fuksa, who triumphed over 1000m in Szeged last weekend, pulled away from the field, moving a boat length ahead of his nearest challenger at the halfway point.
Italians Carlo Tacchini and Gabriele Casadei did all they could to close the gap in the second half of the race but Fuksa comfortably won in 3:46.76.
Silver went to Tacchini in 3:47.97, with Casadei winning bronze in 3:49.32.
“This is my third gold medal in two weeks so I am very happy with that,” said Fuksa.
“I am looking forward to taking my gold medals to my daughter so she can play with them.
“I felt very comfortable but I think I can be faster than this so I will aim to do that at the World Championships in Milan and hopefully be in the middle of the podium so we will see what happens.”
Kopasz remains kayak king in 1000m
Hungary’s Balint Kopasz made it back-to-back men’s K1 1000m titles following an impressive performance on Polish waters.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medallist looked controlled throughout as he backed up his win in Szeged with victory in Poznan, winning in 3:26.42.
Czechia’s Josef Dostal, the Paris 2024 Olympic champion, produced a brilliant final 100m to take silver from lane nine in 3:26.94.
In lane one, there was also a terrific effort from Germany’s Jakob Thordsen to clinch bronze in 3:27.60.
“For me, I have the same feeling as the World Cup in Szeged,” said Kopasz.
“It was an impressive race for me, so I am very happy to win this race again.
“There was a good leading wind which helps me to achieve a good time in the 1000m.
“I would like to go to the World Championships and, before that the European Championships, so I will push hard in training.
“It’s a fantastic start to the season for me and I feel strong both mentally and physically.”
Full coverage of the ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Cup can be viewed on the Planet Canoe YouTube channel.
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