With entry restrictions still in place in Australia many European paddlers that usually trained in the winter period in the land Down Under now train in Reunion. The island in the Indian Ocean and overseas department and region of France hosted several races in the past weeks and one of them was also ICF Canoe slalom ranking race.
The course in Sainte-Suzanne hosts many of the top international paddlers this winter and they are more than happy than races are being organised to test their form before the season of major international races kick off. This weeknd two competition days of the ICF Canoe slalom raning were scheduled but the cyclone caused a lot of damage in the island, so at the end the race was organised in one day.
World and European champion and 2016 OG silver medallist Peter Kauzer from Slovenia was the winner of men’s kayak final. He produced a penalty free run and was more than half a second faster than his rivals. Young French paddler Titouan Castryck was second, 0.68 seconds behind, while Olympic Champion Jiri Prskavec from Czech Republic finished third.
Last year’s Olympic and World Champion German Ricarda Funk continues her winning streak. She was again unbeatable in women’s kayak. Despite two penalty seconds she was 2.38 seconds faster than her teammate Elena Lilik, and almost three and a half seconds faster than Andrea Herzog who made sure it was an all German podium.
Herzog won two podium positions. Besides third place in kayak she won in women’s canoe. The 2019 World Champion won ahead of Czech paddler Tereza Kneblova and Italian Marta Bertoncelli.
In men’s canoe final Italian Rafaello Ivaldi produced the best run. Only 0.05 second behind was German Franz Anton, while third place went to Spain thanks to Ander Elosegi.
Photo: Facebook page Comité Régional Réunion de Canoë-Kayak
8.2.2022
