Australia’s Jessica Fox captured an emphatic back-to-back canoe victory at the International Canoe Federation Canoe Slalom World Cup in Augsburg, Germany.
After missing out on a spot in the women’s kayak final on Friday, Fox came roaring back to top form on Saturday.
Building on her success from Prague last week, Fox sealed first position once again in the women’s C1.
Click here for live startlists and results from Augsburg
There were many emotions on display in the men’s C1 final as Italy’s Raffaello Ivaldi captured his first World Cup gold since 2023.
It was another challenging course setup with many paddlers coming unstuck in the final section.
Fox picked up a two-second penalty when she touched the penultimate gate, but her time of 107.93 was still enough for her to claim a comfortable victory.
"It's the best feeling. I was disappointed yesterday not to make the final in the kayak, so to come out on this course today and put together a winning run means a lot,” said Fox.
“This course constantly makes you question your decisions and your line choices, but I managed to piece everything together.
“The touch near the bottom was probably the only thing stopping it from being a perfect run, but overall I'm really pleased."
Just 0.01 seconds separated silver and bronze as Spain’s Nuria Vilarrubla went one better from her heats to capture silver in 110.27.
Martina Satkova edged her way into third, crossing the line in 110.28, making it the Czech’s second medal of the World Cup Series.
With reigning Olympic and world champion Nicolas Gestin of France absent from the final after incurring a 50 point penalty for missing gate 20, Ivaldi jumped at his chance for glory.
The Italian finished in 97.51 to end his three-year wait for a World Cup gold.
It was a fantastic moment for Ivaldi, who did not compete on the World Cup circuit last year.
"It means so much to win. Last year I wasn't even here, so to be back now is incredibly special,” said Ivaldi.
“I fought my way back onto the team and worked closely with everyone around me - my coach, the team, and the federation.
“It's been a huge collective effort, and I think all that hard work is finally paying off."
Great Britain’s Adam Burgess was leading the way until Ivaldi stepped up, but claimed silver in 97.58, just 0.07 seconds behind the victor.
Despite incurring a two-second penalty, Slovakia’s Matej Benus battled for bronze and secured his spot on the podium in 99.16.
It was heartbreak for hometown hero Sideris Tasiadis as he topped the qualifying with the best time of the day, but struggled to take his form into the final, placing just outside the podium places in fourth.
Women’s Canoe
- FOX Jessica (AUS ) 107.93
- VILARRUBLA Nuria (ESP) +2.34
- SATKOVA Martina (CZE) +2.35
Men’s Canoe
- IVALDI Raffaello (ITA) 97.51
- BURGESS Adam (GBR) +0.07
- BENUS Matej (SVK) +1.65
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