Terry is part of the Deep Creek 2014 Delegation attending the 2011 Canoe Slalom World Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia. He is there with the folks from Maryland and USA Canoe Kayak. Today we have a guest blog from former US Olympic Coach, Bob Campbell!
Saturday, September 10
An exciting day of racing at the Cunovo Sports Center where the 2011 Canoe Slalom World Championships are continuing outside Bratislava, Slovakia. After a couple of days of inclement weather with intense winds, the sun has returned and shed strong light on the intensity of competion among these top athletes. Fierce racing yesterday whittled down the field to 20 and 30 boats, respectively, in the Men’s double canoe (C2) and the women’s kayak (K1W) events. Times were amazingly close, as more than just making it through to the semi-finals, paddlers were also vying for Olympic berths for their home countries.
Team USA has already qualified one Olympic spot for the women’s K1 from yesterday’s qualifiers and has sent two men’s kayaks and one men’s single canoe (C1) through to attempt to secure spots in those categories, as well. Tomorrow’s final rounds will determine if they will be successful in those pursuits. Meanwhile, today’s finals of the C2 and K1W did not disappoint, as thousands of spectators cheered wildly for their home team as they descended a particularly challenging course. At the end of the day, Slovakia paddled away with one gold and two silver medals, with Austria, Spain, and France filling in the rest of the podium awards.
It’s difficult to accurately convey the extreme excitement of this event as it builds throughout the week. The Deep Creek 2014 delegation that has been here observing this week has been duly impressed by both the character and power of this spectacle and looks forward to bringing these same thrills of championship whitewater to the state of Maryland in just a few years. You can follow the remainder of the competion, see results, and check out video segments through links available at: http://www.facebook.com/whitewaterparks
Bob
