Jessica Fox OAM is unrivalled as the greatest Canoe Slalom athlete of all-time, reaffirming her status in world rankings with two gold medals and two World Cup Crowns in Paris over the weekend.
Jess won the Women’s C1 on Friday night, the Women’s K1 on Saturday night, then added a bronze medal from the Women’s Kayak Cross on Sunday night, in a stunning audition for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games Canoe Slalom program, which will be staged at the same venue.
Jess claimed the overall 2023 WK1 World Cup Crown, having won three from five World Cups this season. Held at the 2024 Olympic venue in Vaires-Sur-Marne, on the outskirts of Paris, the banks were lined with hundreds of children who provided a taste of what Jess and her Australian teammates can expect from fans at next year’s Games.
“It’s amazing to wrap up the season, winning the overall World Cup,” Jess said. “It was our first race on the Paris Olympic course, so it’s good to get a feel for it and see what it’ll be like next year.
“There was an amazing crowd here, lots of kids, they were just screaming the whole time, so super loud, energetic which was awesome. I really enjoyed racing here, which is a good sign, I think. It’s been a long season, what I learned from Tokyo is you can’t have a perfect preparation leading into an Olympics, you have to be adaptable.
“I definitely felt the pressure leading into Tokyo, so I’m sure it will be quite similar. But it’s a privilege and an honour to represent Australia and to have that opportunity on the world stage at the Olympic Games, when so many in our sport don’t get that opportunity.”
Jess made it back-to-back gold medals the following night with gold in the Women’s C1, also securing the Women’s World Cup C1 crown.
“It was amazing to put down that run in the (C1) final,” Jess said. “I had some issues with penalties in gates one and two, so to finish off strong today, to take the win… amazing weekend.
“It’s been an amazing season to take the overall crown in both the C1 and K1. It’s never easy to line up and race, especially with this long season and big program and I am exhausted today, so I am really happy.
“It shows I’ve been consistent throughout the season, there’s always some ups and downs at certain world cups, but I’ve felt good, I’ve raced well. The standard of women’s paddling is always increasing, and it’s never a given you know, you always have to show up.
“It’s been a near perfect season, but there are still things to improve on and things to work on. I’ve never raced a test event before in the lead-up to a Games, so this was different, this was new, and it was great to get that first look and that first feel on the Paris course.”
It was a family affair in the Women’s C1 final, with Jess’ sister Noemie finishing in seventh place overall, whilst in the Men’s K1 Final, dual Olympian Lucien Delfour delivered a strong finals performance finishing sixth overall.
