Beijing Olympic Games

Updated: 2008-08-23 17:49:42

Saul Craviotto and Carlos Perez of Spain compete. (Photo credit: Xinhua)

Spain claimed the Men’s Kayak Double (K2) 500m title in one minute and 28.736 seconds at the Beijing Olympics on Saturday.

Germany took the silver in 1:28.827, and Belarus got the bronze in 1:30.005.

Saul Craviotto and Carlos Perez of Spain celebrate. (Photo credit: Xinhua)

Updated: 2008-08-23 15:59:38

Ken Wallace poses on the podium. (Photo credit: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

Ken Wallace from Australia claimed the Men’s Kayak Single (K1) title in one minute and 37.252 seconds at the Beijing Olympics on Saturday.

Adam van Koeverden from Canada took the silver in 1:37.630, and Tim Brabants from Britain got the bronze in 1:37.671.

Ken Wallace celebrates after his win. (Photo credit: Xinhua)

Ken Wallace celebrates after his win. (Photo credit: Xinhua)

Updated: 2008-08-15 20:05:28

(BEIJING, August 15) — After getting rained out the previous day, six pairs of paddlers finally were able to compete in the finals of the Men’s Slalom Canoe Double (C2), while rescheduled competition also commenced in the semifinal and final of the Women’s Slalom Kayak Single (K1) on Friday, August 15.

Men’s Slalom C2

The Olympic champions in 2000 and 2004, Slovakian twins Peter and Pavol Hochschorner, placed second in the previous day’s semifinal but were at their best at Friday’s final run, winning with a time of 190.82 seconds.

Peter and Pavol Hochschorner (Photo credit: Getty)

Jaroslav Volf and Ondřej Štěpánek from the Czech Republic, who incurred no penalties in either the semifinal or final, delivered a solid performance and their 192.89 seconds won them the Silver medal. Russians Mikhail Kuznetsovk and Dmitry Larionov took Bronze in 197.37 seconds.

Despite being the fastest crew in the final, French pair Martin Braud and Cedric Forgit could only manage fourth overall after making uncharacteristic mistakes and incurring penalties in their semifinal run.

Germans Felix Michel and Sebastian Piersig, leaders after the first run, produced a disappointing performance and finished last in the final.

Women’s Slalom K1

Slovakia also claimed a gold in the Women’s K1 from defending champion Elena Kaliska, who came in first in both the semi and the final. Her total time was 192.64 seconds.

Elena Kaliska (Photo credit: Getty)

Australia’s Jacqueline Lawrence grabbed silver with a total of 206.94 seconds, 14.30 behind Kaliska. She ranked fourth in the semi and second in the final.

Bronze went to Austria’s Violetta Oblinger Peters, who only clinched seventh place in the semi but came in third in the final.

French kayaker Emilie Fer was second in the semifinal with a time of 98.50 seconds, but after having 54 penalty seconds added to her final time, she dropped down to seventh in the ranking.

Updated: 2008-08-15 18:23:04

Stephanie Lawrence, Elena Kaliska and Violetta Oblinger Peters (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Slovakia’s Elena Kaliska won the women’s Kayak gold at the Beijing Olympic Games here on Friday. Australia’s Jacqueline Lawrence took the silver and Austria’s Violetta Oblinger Peters won the bronze.

Elena Kaliska competes. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Elena Kaliska celebrates on the podium. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Elena Kaliska celebrates on the podium. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Updated: 2008-08-15 17:32:47

Elena Kaliska of Slovakia (Photo credit: Getty Images)

(BEIJING, August 15) — Elena Kaliska of Slovakia continued her country’s gold streak in the Canoe/Kayak Slalom events, finishing first in the Women’s Slalom Kayak Single final on Friday, August 15. Slovakian paddlers have also captured the gold in the Men’s Canoe Single and Double events.

Kaliska’s total time was 192.64 seconds, a big 14.30 seconds above the second-place finisher. She completed both her runs with no penalties, with 97.13 seconds in the semifinal and 95.51 seconds in the final.

Jacqueline Lawrence of Australia finished the final run in 103.54 seconds with no penalties for a total 206.94 seconds and the silver medal.

Violetta Oblinger Peters of Austria came in third with a total time of 214.77 seconds, including two penalty seconds in the semifinal and four penalty seconds in the final.

French kayaker Emilie Fer was second in the semifinal with a time of 98.50 seconds after a two-second penalty, and finished the final run in another quick time of 99.46 seconds. Fer incurred 54 penalty seconds in the final, however, dropping her down to seventh in the ranking.

Three other kayakers finished behind Fer, each also incurring over 50 seconds in penalties.

Updated: 2008-08-15 17:31:06

Pavol Hochschorner and Peter Hochschorner pose with their gold medals. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Slovakia’s Hochschorner brothers, Peter and Pavol, completed a hat-trick of Olympic gold medals in the Men’s C2 Slalom race at the Beijing Olympic Games here on Friday.

The twin brothers have dominated the event for years and won the event in both the Sydney and Athens Olympic Games.

Pavol Hochschorner (front) and Peter Hochschorner compete. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Pavol Hochschorner (front) and Peter Hochschorner compete. (Photo credit: Liu Dawei/Xinhua)
Pavol Hochschorner and Peter Hochschorner celebrate. (Photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Updated: 2008-08-15 17:29:22

Peter and Pavol Hochschorner of Slovakia (Photo credit: Getty Images)

(BEIJING, August 15) — Slovakian twins Peter and Pavol Hochschorner didn’t let their fans down as they won the Canoe\Kayak Slalom C2 final on Friday, taking their third Olympic gold medal in their third Olympic appearance.

If their compatriot Michal Martikán is the king of Slalom C1, then Peter and Pavol are the Twin Towers in Slalom C2. They have virtually dominated this event for the past 12 years, winning most major international events in addition to two Olympic gold medals.

The pair finished second in the semifinal on Thursday which was interrupted by heavy rain. They were beaten again in the final, placing second with a time of 95.97 seconds. However, after combing the results of the semifinal and final races, they won the event with a total time of 190.82 seconds, including four seconds of penalty.

Runners-up Ondřej Štěpánek and Jaroslav Volf of the Czech Republic didn’t get any penalties in the two runs, but they were still over-paddled by the Slovakian twins. Their second place result is 192.89 seconds, 2.07 seconds behind Peter and Pavol.

Russian pair Mikhail Kuznetsov and Dmitry Larionov placed third clocking 197.37 seconds.

Cédric Forgit and Martin Braud of France did best in the final, but their lackluster performance in the semifinal downgraded them to fourth place.

Italian pair Andrea Benetti and Erik Masoero finished fifth with a total time of 204.12 seconds, followed by German pair Felix Michel and Sebastian Piersig who ranked first after the semifinal.