Top Paddlers to Compete at Oceania Championships this Weekend

The Penrith Whitewater Stadium in Sydney, Australia will be the venue of the 2012 Oceania Canoe Slalom Championships this weekend. The Championships which begins on Friday, 24 February also serves as Olympic Qualifiers for the continent of Oceania.The three day event has attracted over 200 athletes from 24 countries, including 21 Olympic and World Champions.

The Penrith Whitewater Stadium in Sydney, Australia will be the venue of the 2012 Oceania Canoe Slalom Championships this weekend. The Championships which begins on Friday, 24 February also serves as Olympic Qualifiers for the continent of Oceania.The three day event has attracted over 200 athletes from 24 countries, including 21 Olympic and World Champions.

"The Oceania Championships will have the last two Olympic trial races, so the aim is to win on the first day but if I don’t, hopefully I’ll make the final and I’ll have to fight for it in that,’’ Fox said.

The Australian Open was the first selection event for the Australians, with the Oceania Championships this weekend acting as selection events 2 and 3. The Semi Final/Final for each event will act as the third selection event. Australia can qualify a maximum of 5 athlete quotas for the London Games.

Also competing, but already qualified for the London Olympic Games are New Zealand’s K1 paddlers Luuka Jones and Mike Dawson who both qualified boats at the World Championships in Bratislava last year, and were formally announced as part of the New Zealand Olympic Team earlier this month.

"I met the criteria last September but it's good to have it officially confirmed. Now I can just focus on my preparation," said Luuka Jones who came in second place at the New Zealand Open last month.

Cook Islands paddler Ella Nicholas is also among the mix of athletes that have already had their places confirmed for the London Games.

At stake are an additional Men’s K1 and Men’s C1 spot, with the highest placed eligible Oceania athlete from the Championships earning the remaining NOC quota.

Athletes to look out for:

Men’s C1 –Expect Australian Open champion Sideris Tasiadis (GER) to battle it out with current World Champion Denis Gargaud Chanut and fellow Frenchman and two time Olympic champion Tony Estanguet . Slovakia’s Michael Martikan and Matej Benus are others to watch.

Men’s C2 – At their best, the reigning triple Olympic champions Pavol and Peter Hoschorner will be hard to top, but expect teammates the Skantar cousins Ladislav and Peter, and the French duo Denis Gargaud Chanut and Fabien Lefevre to challenge for line honours.

Men’s K1 – Sebastian Schubert (GER) will be hard to beat after mastering the course at the Australian Open, but expect 2009 and current World Champion Peter Kauzer (SLO)and Danielle Molmenti (ITA) to challenge the for title. Delfour, Forsythe and Draper appear outside chances for a medal, with Lucien Delfour the most likely to sneak onto the podium.

Women’s K1 – 17 year old Jessica Fox along with teammates Kate Lawrence, Sarah Grant and Rosalyn Lawrence are expected to give the international paddlers a real run for the gold, and the Austrian duo of Corinna Kuhnle and Violetta Oblinger-Peters will be the ones to beat. Kuhnle will be looking to upstage her fellow countrywoman after Oblinger-Peters won at the Australian Open.

Women’s C1 – A non-Olympic event, expect Jessica Fox, Rosalyn Lawrence, Leanne Guinea, Katerina Hoskova (CZE), Katerina Macova (SVK) and Lena Stoecklin will be fighting for a place on the podium.

Oceania Website - http://oceania.canoe.org.au

For more information, visit: www.canoeicf.com

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