Prague ready to set the scene for Olympic qualification season

Olympic and World Champions will be amongst a star studded line-up that's set for the 2015 ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup season opener on the renown run in Troja, Prague.

Troja is a regular stop for the world's best and will certainly bring back fond memories for the select few who managed gold on the same run at the 2013 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships.

All of the victors from that event will be present for the 2015 season series premiere and will again be top contenders in their respective classes.

David Florence (GBR) managed a double gold (C1M & C2M) in 2013 and will be eager to start the crucial Olympic qualification year in the same rich vein of form. The 32-year-old sits at the top of the world ranking in C1M and will, again, join forces with Richard Hounslow (GBR) in the C2M to form a formidable partnership.

Slovakia's Matej Benus and Alexander Slafkovsky are likely to be hot on the heels of the Brit in the C1M, as will the recently crowned European Champion Benjamin Savsek (SLO).

London 2012 Olympic silver medallist, Sideris Tasiadis (GER), the 2011 World Champion, Denis Chanut Gargaud (FRA) and, the winner of this season's U23 World Championships, Adam Burgess (GBR), are also in the draw.

In the C2M, world number one duo, Matthieu Peche and Nicolas Peschier (FRA), European Champions, Robert Behling and Thomas Becker (GER), and current World Champions, Luka Bozic and Saso Taljat (SLO) are also in the mix.

Vavrinec Hradilek and Jiri Prskavec (CZE, K1M) hold the hosts main hopes of gold. The pair managed a historic one, two at the World Championships two years ago and will be looking to, once again, maximise their home-course knowledge, as well as benefit from the partisan atmosphere in their bid for more success in Prague.

Germany's Sebastian Schubert (K1M) will be another of the main contenders. The 26-year-old has topped the season rankings for the last two years and will be looking for an historic treble in 2015.

Teammate, Hannes Aigner (GER, K1M) took to the top step of the podium at the 2014 World Cup in Prague and will be a strong contender for another medal on the Troja channel.

The current Olympic Champion, Daniele Molmenti (ITA), is also ready to go and will be looking to bounce back from a quiet 2014.

Jessica Fox (AUS) is the standout performer in both women's classes. The 21-year-old has had a meteoric rise to the top of the sport with her Olympic K1W silver acting as a catalyst for domination of the sport in the subsequent seasons.

Having won every individual World title available in 2014, Fox will be looking to add further gold to her name in Prague in both disciplines.

Comfortably the favourite in the C1W class, the Australian is likely to face much stiffer competition in the K1W, with world number one, Corinna Kuhnle (AUT), and Olympic Champion, Émilie Fer (FRA), both in the draw.

Local hope rests with Kateřina Kudějová (CZE, K1W), the two-time U23 World Champion is yet to really breakthrough at senior level, but Prague will undoubtedly provide the 25-year-old a great opportunity.

Teammate and double Olympic Gold medalist, Štěpánka Hilgertová (CZE) is also in the draw. The 47-year-old is a sporting icon in the Czech Republic and will look to roll back the years in a bid for more success in front of a knowledgeable crowd.

Another looking to roll back the years is experienced campaigner, David Ford (CAN, K1M), who has the honour of being the oldest in the draw at 48. At the other end of the spectrum, Latvia’s Emils Putnins is just 15-years-old and will compete in the C1M.

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