There have been many memorable moments in a sensational International Canoe Federation season. In the eighth of our moments of 2024, we look back at when Noemie Fox won a historic women's kayak cross Olympic title.
For a long time, Noemie Fox had been in the shadows of her champion sister, Jessica Fox.
But as the former slid down the ramp at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, little did she know that stardom was right behind her!
There was plenty of noise around the Olympic debut of kayak cross, and after Jessica's canoe-kayak double at the Olympic Games, it was time for Noemie to shine in the sun.
She grabbed the opportunity in style, powering to victory in a thrilling women’s kayak cross final, beating France’s Angele Hug and Britain's Kimberley Woods.
The race saw Woods, the reigning world kayak cross champion, getting off to a flier before an error on the first upstream gate allowed Fox to seize the moment.
“It feels surreal,” Fox said after winning gold at Paris 2024.
“It’s crazy that it is mine.
“I experienced Jess’ gold-medal moment in Tokyo and the two golds that she won here.
“She has put so much hard work and effort into that.
“You don’t dare to dream this big, but I did this time.
“I dared to dream to get to the Olympics and then to get to the final.
“When I saw in the last upstream gate that I was first, it was pure joy.
“There are no words to describe the feeling, and the crowd just carried me through.”
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Noemie's road to the Games was a rollercoaster of emotions, to say the least.
After her gamble to not compete at last year’s ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships, Noemie secured her ticket to Paris in the Olympic qualifier in Prague in June.
While the moment was something to cherish forever, the Fox sisters suffered heartbreak soon when they learnt of the death of their grandfather, Roger, the father of their dad Richard.
But with Roger watching from the skies, it was meant to be as Noemie crossed the line and sealed a golden Games for the Foxes in France — a country for which her mother Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi competed for and won bronze at the Atlanta 1996 Olympics.
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