Olympic Slalom Heats Review Posted: 11 Aug 2008 03:36 PM

TheOlympics Day 3: Slalom Heats That big moment.  Sitting on the start.  David and Campbell get serious.  All the training, the years of commitment and coaching, the sessions the weights, the previous medals - all in the past.  You go now with what you've got on.     And the result of today's heats? Big Success for GBR! David Florence and Campbell Walsh of Team GB both paddled at top form to win through to the Semifinals of the Slalom Canoeing at the Shunyi Olympic Wildwater Canoeing Park.  The first of two heat runs had them lying 7th and 14th, but their second runs were excellent.  David qualified in 3rd and Campbell dug-in to gain 9th. C1 Heats results First Run C1 Heats results 2nd Run K1M Heats results 1st Run.  K1M Heats results 2nd Run. After first runs David was lying 7th, had 89.47 Clear (+4.34 seconds behind). After a blistering 82.16 second runs he qualified in 3rd out of 16 runners with 171.63 Total (+1.48 seconds behind). After first runs Campbell was lying 14th, had 86.72 (Including a 2 second penalty) (+4.93 behind). After a slower 85.72 clear second run he qualified in 9th   out of 21 in a total of 172.44 (+5.95 behind). Note the results – David in C1 beat Campbell in K1! David’s second run time was the fastest C1 run by nearly 3 seconds. An amazing run that would have put him 2nd in the Kayak Event heats second runs. Walsh got the first run 3rd fastest time, behind Krauzer (81.79) and Grimm (82.9)   That two seconds penalty cost him 11 places. However Walsh was only 9th fastest in the second run, but went clear but 1 second slower in time, and was promoted up by default because of big second-run mistakes from men who had done better first runs. Draper (AUS), Canedo (ESP), Ford (CAN), Bouten (NED), Parsons (USA) all finished poorly. A big surprise was Benjamin Boukpeti from Togo who got the fastest 2nd Run time in 82.09.  He is well-up for a medal if he can repeat that form.   This fierce course was daunting for many of the paddlers.  David and Campbell did the job and qualified for the semis without too much ostentation.  But look at David's second run time! It would have put him second place in the Kayaks.  It was nearly 3 seconds quicker than any of the other C1s.  It certainly beat Campbell, who will be delighted to have the opportunity of turning it on in the semis. The big upset today - (apart from Andy Murry's 1st round defeat) was the USA's S. Parsons was P3 after the first runs.  In the second run, he overcooked it at the last up left, went too high straight at the pole and was judged to have not got enough of himself over the gateline.  The 50 second penalty was the coup de grace, and he will not appear tomorrow (unless Team USA pull off a protest).  David Ford (CAN) was unlucky to catch an obstacle and spin into the huge stopper at gate 15.  He demonstrated all his skill to get out of it. The top paddlers were mainly the older, more experienced heads with Molmenti and Florence the exceptions.  In the K1M it was Kauzer from Slovenia, Lefevre of France and Molmenti of Italy.  In the Canadians it was Martikan of Slovakia, Benzian of Germany and Florence of GBR.  The older paddlers like Martikan and Lefevre seemed to flow visibly faster, getting into route-1, the sweet flowline, and not appearing to have to work so hard, slipping through the huge stoppers without seeming to get wet - So much so it was catching out the commentators.                Now for the Semifinal Run on Tuesday. What to expect in the semis run?  In Kayak the top 15 go to the Semis. In the Canadians, the top 12 go to the Semis.  There may be a more technical course-set. More missed gates and more touches. Lefevre and Martikan will need to have a big off-day or it is scarcely conceivable they will not qualify top for the final. Campbell and David should feel strong and ready. They are paddling at the top of their form.  Campbell will have had a fright today.  He knows he has to fire-up all his skills in the semis. The Semi and the Final are cumulative, so there is no room for a conservative run, on the other hand – you have to finish a clean semi to have a chance to qualify for the final.  After the Semis, only the top paddlers go to the final. Once there, it will be the hungriest that wins. I believe Fabien Lefevre will take some beating, because he is hungry after Athens where he finished in Bronze behind Walsh. The Gold Medallist from Athens (Benoit Peschier FRA) isn’t in Beijing, so Lefevre will want to carry on the tradition. As for Martikan, he will go flat-out in the semis – but he played it slow in the heats.  Martikan hasn't tried-out full power and may yet overcook it. If David puts in two runs like his second run heat, he’ll win a medal. However, the quiet men Estanguet and Robin Bell if they make finals will be a threat in their swansongs.  I may put a fiver on our man from Togo.  He'll certainly get awarded an honorary FCC membership!  Day 1 Beijing Opening Ceremony 8/8/08 - David Florence's birthday.  A good omen.  This is the luckiest day on the Chinese Calendar.   David Florence took part in the overwhelmingly spectacular Opening Ceremony at the Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing today 8/8/8. Pictured here with fellow Olympian Andy Murray, he will see for himself how awesome is the scale of the Olympic Enterprise. FCC Is David's Club, and on behalf of everyone, Go For It! - You alone will be the best qualified expert to know what to do. This Slalom course is beyond the usual.  Some of the toughest C1 coaches will not even paddle the course, it is so severe and continuous.  David is now in a class of his own in GBR C1.  He is truly an awesome athlete, now.  Really World Class.  George and Jill will join their famous son this weekend to cheer him on this Monday for the Heats and Tuesday for the Finals.

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