British paddlers earned six medals, including two golds, at the Canoe Slalom World Championship in Oklahoma to light the touchpaper for their Olympic qualification campaign
British paddlers made their acquaintance with the Olympic venue in Oklahoma in impressive fashion as they came away with six medals from ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships to kickstart their Olympic qualification campaign.
Great Britain’s two golds, one silver, and three bronzes placed them third in the medal table behind Australia and Czechia - a hugely successful return for a mixture of experienced heads and new faces among the team.
The event was the first qualification event on the path to Los Angeles 2028, when whitewater events will be hosted at the same venue in Oklahoma.
Team GB's experienced paddlers proved their credentials once again, as Joe Clarke MBE, Adam Burgess, and Kimberley Woods all ended the week with silverware of one colour or another.
Burgess, a silver medallist in Paris, earned his first individual medal at a World Championships after a strong performance in the men’s C1 earned him the silver medal behind champion Miquel Travé.
That backed up a strong season for the yogi, as he featured on consecutive World Cup podiums for the first time in his career in Prague and Augsburg.
On the women’s side, Woods shocked even herself with a storming run to seal a bronze medal despite picking up a two-second penalty in the K1.
Just like two years ago in Paris, she joined Australian paddle sport legend Jessica Fox on the rostrum, and it was Woods’ second consecutive World Championships medal, following on from Penrith last year.
Clarke pinched another gold medal for his collection in the men’s kayak cross individual to make it an extraordinary seven titles at this level across his career, although the time trial is not an Olympic event.
The 33-year-old soared to fame with a gold medal in the K1 at the 2016 Olympics, before earning a silver medal in the kayak cross in Paris in 2024. But he was eliminated at the semi-final stage in the latter in Oklahoma.
But Great Britain’s fresher faces were not to be outdone as they chased their first World Championship medals and qualification for their first Olympic Games.
Ryan Westley and Peter Linksted joined Burgess in the men’s team C1 event, putting down a monster run as the penultimate team to go, and they took the gold medal in a time of 93.18 seconds. However, team events are not part of Los Angeles' Olympic programme.
Westley and Burgess had been trumped to victory by the French team for the past two years, but breathed a sigh of relief when France earned a two-second penalty early in their run to hand the gold to GB.
Woods, Mallory Franklin and Ellis Miller just missed out on a team bronze in the women’s event.
And Scottish siblings Sam and Lois Leaver left an indelible mark on Oklahoma, as both won their first World Championship medal.
Lois clinched a spectacular bronze medal in the women’s kayak cross individual with a time of 51.17 seconds, which put her just 0.12 seconds off gold.
Frenchwoman Angèle Hug almost knocked her off the podium, but was given a penalty after crossing the finish line, reinstating Lois’ third position and adding a senior bronze to her two U23 podium finishes.
And brother Sam rounded off an excellent week for Great Britain with a bronze of his own in the kayak cross after winning his heat, quarter-final and semi-final.
The final proved just one step too far as a promising start was derailed by Swiss paddler Dimitri Marx and Czechia’s Vít Přindiš powered through to take victory.
The World Championships were an overwhelming success for British paddlers, and it sets them in good stead two years out from LA.